Oakland's Alysa Liu wins gold medal in Olympic figure skating

"Wearing an asymmetrical sequined gold dress, and with her dark hair highlighted with horizontal blonde stripes, Liu, who entered the day in third place after the short program on Tuesday, performed her free skate program to Donna Summer's "MacArthur Park." From her opening triple flip to her final double axel, Liu skated confidently and strongly, smiling throughout the routine. After her performance she blew kisses to the cheering crowd, which included Bay Area native and 1992 Winter Olympics figure skating gold medalist Kristi Yamaguchi."

"In 2019, Liu, at 13, became the youngest ever U.S. women's national champion, and then won the American title again in 2020. She went on to compete in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, placing sixth. She then announced her retirement from the sport. Nearly two years later, in March 2024, Liu launched a comeback. In interviews, she expressed that in the first stage of her career she mostly took direction and did not have meaningful input on the trajectory of her career and the music, attire, and choreography of her routines."

"Oakland figure skater Alysa Liu won gold at the Winter Olympics in Milan Thursday, completing an improbable climb to the top of the sport after a multi-year hiatus. Liu is the first U.S. woman to win an individual medal in figure skating since Sasha Cohen won the silver in 2006. The 20-year-old Liu started figure skating at 5 years old at the Oakland Ice Arena, where she still trains today, and a banner hangs honoring her 2025 World Championship."

Alysa Liu won Olympic gold in Milan after returning from a multi-year hiatus, completing an improbable climb back to the sport's top. She entered the free skate third after the short program and performed to Donna Summer's "MacArthur Park," skating confidently from a triple flip through a final double axel while smiling and acknowledging the crowd. Liu began skating at age five at the Oakland Ice Arena, won U.S. national titles as a teenager, competed at the 2022 Beijing Olympics, retired, then launched a comeback in March 2024 and won the 2025 World Championships.

Read at The Oaklandside