Alysa Liu represents America in more ways than just Team USA. The Bay Area native is an alt, hair-dye-loving, hardworking young woman who just wants to follow her dreams. We’ve all seen those Hollywood clips – immigrant parents making fun of their children for following their hearts, saying that “that’s not how the real world works.” But Alysa Liu, the daughter of an immigrant, won Olympic gold by simply following her passion and having fun while representing a country that historically discriminated against people of her Chinese ancestry. In a time when Americans are torn on whether or not the American Dream still exists, Alysa wrote and fulfilled her own. Here’s how she did it.
Alysa Liu’s origin story has been under fire recently for being, well, different. Born in 2005, she is the oldest of five children born through either IVF or surrogacy (TikTok loves to debate this). Her father, Arthur Liu, is a single dad – or not, we don’t really know. Despite being ceaselessly criticized online for her origin story, Alysa is not ashamed of her backstory; it built up an Olympic champion.
Alysa started skating in Oakland at the age of five after her father took her and her sister to a rink for group lessons. She had a knack for it, so her father switched her to private coaching. She soon became the youngest ever U.S. national champion, winning the gold medal at just 13. Recently, a video resurfaced online of Alysa being so tiny when she won the award that she needed help to climb onto her first-place podium. Alysa’s childhood was truly unlike anyone else’s—because she didn’t have one. Alysa had spent nearly every day since she was five at the skating rink, not entirely by choice.
Her father, Arthur, was described as being overly attached to her skating career, spending around a million dollars on private coaching and showing up to watch her lessons with a radar gun to time her jumps. He secretly flew her to dozens of countries to receive the best coaching while telling the world that her training decisions were her own choices. Arthur’s investment in her skating is in many ways a privilege for Alysa; not everyone has a million dollars laying around to spend on ice skating for one of their five children. However, for 13-year-old Alysa, it was a terrible time. Her entire life had revolved around ice skating, a sport she hadn’t even chosen for herself. There were videos of her crying her heart out on the internet because she fell on a jump. She went through a strict diet with coaches and prominent members of the figure skating community commented on her body due to her fame. She even had to live alone in a dorm at age 14 to receive training. Worst of all, her father was so invested in her skating that it felt to her as if the activity she had sacrificed her childhood for wasn’t truly her own. “It was basically his business,” says Alysa. “It wasn’t even really mine.”
However, this child who felt as if she was being controlled by her sport would become an Olympic champion known for a unique personality that shines through her skating. This 180-degree switch was brought about by Alysa making the smartest, most productive decision available to her: quitting. At age 16, after the 2022 Beijing Olympics, Alysa retired after already having one of the most decorated careers in U.S. women’s skating history. “My worry was that I’ll have never lived with my family. I’m growing up so fast, so young.” And, though she enjoyed her brief retirement, she realized her lifelong passion would always be skating. In 2024, she returned, but with a few rules in place: no diets, no dictators, and no dad. From now on, Alysa would be in charge of her own skating career from the music choice to the food she ate. Arthur would support her, of course, but from the stands where he wouldn’t be breathing down her neck. And this independence is what finally propelled her to the Olympic crown.
Alysa Liu is a beacon of hope for the modern Bay Area teenager. Where people sacrifice joy and individuality for success, it’s nice to see a young woman winning for being herself and purely doing what she loves. Additionally, she is living proof that parental pressure can certainly be beneficial, but it can also be what holds us back from realizing our true potential. Also, her name is pronounced (ah-lee-sa lee-oh), but she thinks it’s cute how most people butcher her name, so the mispronunciation is welcome in her eyes. Alysa Liu’s shining halo is made up of independence, courage, hard work, and passion. In the end, if we change ourselves so that we will achieve something, then is it truly us that achieved it?