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 was in third place after the short program, but leapt to the top spot with the highest free skate score in the field. She is the first U.S. woman to win an individual medal in figure skating since Sasha Cohen won the silver in 2006.

Wearing an asymmetrical sequined gold dress, and with her dark hair highlighted with horizontal blonde stripes, Liu 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.

Alysa Liu of the United States competes during the women’s figure skating free program at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

The 20-year-old Liu started figure skating at 5 years old at the Oakland Ice Center, where she still trains today, and a banner hangs honoring her 2025 World Championship. 

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. Liu vowed to do things her way in her comeback, and then went on to win the 2025 World Figure Skating Championships in Boston, catapulting her back into the discussion as one of the top skaters in the world. 

Alysa Liu poses for a portrait in May 2025 on her home ice at Oakland Ice Center in front of multiple banner commemorating her figure skating achievements. Credit: Estefany Gonzalez for The Oaklandside

“Take a break so it helps you figure out what you want,” Liu told The Oaklandside last year about her decision to step away from the sport in 2022. “When you’re in your bubble, you can’t see it, so you have to take a step back to really figure out what you want to do.”

After the short program on Tuesday, Liu sat third with a score of 76.59, behind Ami Nakai (78.71) and Kaori Sakamoto (77.23), both of Japan. 

Liu beamed during her warmup prior to the four-minute free skate on Thursday, smiling and waving to fans, friends and family.

“I’m only here because I like it, so, I mean, it would be a problem if I didn’t have joy,” Liu told NBC reporter Andrea Joyce before her free skate. 

Alysa Liu practices at the Oakland Ice Center in May 2025, following her win at the World Figure Skating Championships in Boston. Credit: Estefany Gonzalez for The Oaklandside

After her near flawless performance, she skated off the ice and yelled “That’s what I’m f—ing talking about!” into the television camera. She hugged her coaches and waited for her score and the final two skaters to go to see where she would land on the podium. Liu scored 150.2 in her free skate, launching her into the lead, which held up after Sakamoto (147.67) and Nakai (140.45) fell short of the scores needed to overtake her.

“She figured out how to compete without carrying the weight of it, she stays so loose and completely herself out there. That’s the secret every athlete wants to solve,” NBC commentator and former Olympic champion Tara Lipinski said following Liu’s skate. 

“I’ve never seen someone withstand pressure like Alysa Liu … she’s all sunshine on the ice,” Lipinski added. 

During the first week of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Liu and the United States won gold in the figure skating team competition.

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