In a stunning reversal, Alysa Liu has traded her 2022 retirement for a fiery return to the ice. After stepping away to reclaim a ‘normal’ life, the 20-year-old is now more driven than ever, winning the 2025 World Championships and heading to Milan 2026 as a top contender with a completely new mindset.
Four years ago, Alysa Liu walked away from the sport that had defined her young life, shocking the figure skating world. Now, the 20-year-old is back, and she’s not just returning to compete—she’s returning with a passion and excitement she says she never felt before. Her journey from Olympic burnout to gold-medal favorite is one of the most compelling sports stories heading into the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan.
Liu’s first Olympic appearance in 2022 was, by her own admission, a hollow experience. At just 16, she was already a rising star, a World Championship medalist, and a name on everyone’s lips. Yet, when she arrived in Beijing, her mind was elsewhere. “I was checked out. I was just there for the Olympic experience,” Liu tells PEOPLE exclusively. The grueling all-consuming lifestyle of an elite athlete had taken its toll. She lived in a dorm at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado, a life she described to the Associated Press as a cycle of rink, food, and dorm, with little else. “I really had nothing going on with my life, you know? Just training,” she said. “And so all that, I was like, ‘Skating is not worth it.’ Like, this is not worth it.”
The decision to retire was a bold one, but necessary for her well-being. Liu moved out of the training center, graduated high school, and enrolled at UCLA, where she began studying psychology. For over a year, she embraced the “normal, teenage-girl, older-sister life” she had craved. She went on vacation, spent time with her family, and tried out “every hobby in existence.” It was during a ski trip to Lake Tahoe in 2024 that the feeling returned. The adrenaline of the slopes reignited a spark, and she felt a pull back to the ice. It wasn’t until early 2025 that she knew she was ready to commit fully. “That’s when I was like, ‘I’m doing this for real,’ “ she says with a reawakened excitement.
This time away was not a break from skating; it was a journey toward self-discovery that ultimately led her back. Living a life outside the rink made her realize what she truly loved. “It made me realize what I like to do,” Liu explains. “A lot of aspects in figure skating actually follow in line with my interests.” One of those interests is fashion design. For years, her costumes were chosen for her. Now, the UCLA student is in charge. She finds herself staying up until 2 a.m. after practice, sketching and collaborating with her designer on new, gorgeous dresses. “In figure skating, we have these gorgeous dresses and I love to design them,” Liu says. This creative control is just one of the many facets of her renewed passion.
Liu’s comeback has been nothing short of spectacular. Her new approach, which her coach Phillip DiGuglielmo calls “Alysa 2.0,” has already proven its worth. She captured the gold medal at the 2025 World Championships in a performance that silenced any doubts about her readiness. This victory immediately positioned her as a top contender for the 2026 Olympics, where she will join a formidable Team USA squad that includes Amber Glenn and Isabeau Levito. Critics and fans alike are taking notice of her powerful combination of technical skill and newfound artistic maturity.
As Liu looks ahead to Milan, her confidence feels familiar, but her motivation is entirely new. “She hates this term, but we almost call it Alysa 2.0,” DiGuglielmo told NBC News. “It’s like a reboot, in a way.” While her confidence level may be “more or less the same” as when she was a 16-year-old phenom, her excitement for the actual sport of figure skating is at an all-time high. “But I’m more excited for the figure skating part of it all now,” she says. This shift in mindset—from obligation to genuine love for the craft—is the key difference between her two Olympic journeys.
Whether she leaves Italy with a medal or not, Alysa Liu has already won. She has reclaimed her life, rediscovered her passion, and proven that it’s possible to step away from the spotlight only to return with an even brighter flame. Her story is a powerful testament to the idea that sometimes, to find your greatest strength, you must first allow yourself to be vulnerable enough to walk away. For fans of the sport, the 2026 Olympics promise not just a competition, but the triumphant return of a skater who has found her reason to skate, and it’s more exciting than ever before.
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