Alysa Liu: From Prodigy to UCLA Student and Olympic Hopeful

Alysa Liu is an American figure skater who has captivated audiences with her groundbreaking achievements and unique journey. From her early successes as a young prodigy to her unexpected retirement and subsequent comeback, Liu's story is one of resilience, self-discovery, and a renewed passion for the sport she once dominated. Currently attending UCLA, Liu is balancing her academic pursuits with rigorous training as she sets her sights on the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina.

Early Life and Rise to Prominence

Born on August 8, 2005, in Clovis, California, Alysa Liu was raised in Richmond, in the San Francisco Bay Area. Her father, Arthur Liu, an attorney, emigrated from China. Alysa and her four younger siblings were born to surrogate mothers through anonymous egg donors. Inspired by figure skating icons like Michelle Kwan and Kristi Yamaguchi, Arthur Liu introduced his daughter to the Oakland Ice Center at the age of five. What began as recreational lessons quickly transformed into a competitive pursuit as coaches noticed her talent and thirst to learn.

By the age of 10, Liu was already attempting double Axels, a jump that often separates casual skaters from serious contenders. At age 12, she was competing against much older skaters and consistently holding her own. Her dedication and natural talent quickly propelled her to the top of the sport, making her a force to be reckoned with on the national and international stage.

Record-Breaking Achievements

Alysa Liu's career has been defined by several history-making firsts. She became the youngest U.S. champion in history at age thirteen, landing three triple axels over her two programs. At age 12, she became the youngest woman ever to land a triple Axel in international competition at the Asian Open.

In August 2019, at a Junior Grand Prix event in Lake Placid, New York, Liu became the first American woman to land a quadruple Lutz in competition. She also became the first woman in history to successfully complete a quad lutz and triple axel in the same program.

These achievements solidified her status as a rising star and a trailblazer in the sport.

National and International Success

Liu's early career was marked by a string of impressive victories and accolades. She won the US Figure Skating Championships, becoming the youngest woman to do so and setting a national scoring record of 235.52. She secured two national titles before she even was eligible for a driver’s license. Her back-to-back victories in 2019 and 2020 at age 13 and 14 made her not only the youngest women’s champion ever but also one of the youngest to dominate so convincingly against seasoned skaters.

On the international stage, Liu made her junior international competitive debut in August 2019, with a Grand Prix victory in Lake Placid. One month later, she won her second consecutive title in Gdansk, Poland. She won the silver medal at the 2019-20 Junior Grand Prix Final.

In 2020, she became the world junior bronze medalist, also becoming the first woman ever to land a quadruple Lutz and triple Axel in a single program at a junior grand prix earlier that season.

The 2022 Season and Retirement

A consistent 2022 season helped Liu solidify her childhood dream of qualifying for the Olympics. At the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, Liu helped Team USA secure a bronze medal in the figure skating team event and finished seventh overall in the women’s singles competition. She was one of the youngest skaters in the field, and her performances were clean, energetic, and fearless, earning her fans around the world.

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At the 2022 World Figure Skating Championships, Alysa made her senior Worlds debut where she won the bronze medal. She became the first American woman to reach the world podium since 2016.

In April 2022, at the age of 16, Alysa unexpectedly announced her retirement from competitive skating. “I honestly never thought I would’ve accomplished as much as I did,” she continued. “I’m so happy. I feel so satisfied with how my skating career has gone.”

Life After Retirement and Return to Skating

After retiring following the 2022 world championships, Liu got her driver’s license. She hiked to Mount Everest base camp with friends, spent time with her siblings and enrolled at UCLA. She loved studying psychology. “I found what I like and what I didn’t like,” said Liu, who took time off from UCLA to prepare for the Olympics but hopes to return before her friends graduate. “Really got to know myself, because [when] I had skating, I didn’t really know myself. I couldn’t know myself. I only ever did one thing.”

After a casual ski trip reminded her of the joys of skating, Liu made the decision to return to the sport that shaped, and nearly stole, her childhood. But she would only do it on her terms. The choreography, the music and the costumes would all be her choice. She doesn’t compete to win.

In early 2026, Liu further shared that a major reason she had decided to retire was due to prior trauma from having been overtrained as a child without any off days as well as having others control whatever she ate and drank. "Don’t eat that," she recalled. "You can’t drink water even, because of water weight. Imagine telling a 13-year-old that they can’t drink water because of water weight!" She also claimed to not have many memories of her early competitive career, likely due to traumatic memory suppression. According to her, those years of hardships led her to feel like "this sport is disgusting and I want nothing to do with it." These feelings were further exacerbated during COVID, where she had to live alone and train in isolation. "I felt like I was missing life all for this skating career that I didn’t even care about,” she shared. "I didn’t really have a dream of my own, except to be at home… I knew that little me, at one point, wanted to go to the Olympics. And so I was like, ‘Well, I did it. There’s nothing else holding me to this sport.

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Speaking on her new competitive figure skating mindset, Liu said, "I lived a lot. [I did] everything I possibly could… When I quit, a lot of the toxicity I had attached to skating just, boom, disappeared… When I was a kid, so many people told me who I was and who I wanted to be-there was so much projection. I didn’t have a chance to explore myself, my brain, or my hobbies, but now I have, so I’m feeling really grounded in who I am… When you get older, you can control so much of your life.

Alysa announced via Instagram her return to the sport. Figure Skating confirmed Liu's comeback in a press release. Liu later explained her decision to return to competitive figure skating: "At the very start of this year, I went skiing for the first time. And I hadn't felt that adrenaline rush, I guess, since I'd quit skating. It feels so similar to skiing. And so after I skied, I was like, 'Wait, let me get on the ice and see what it feels like.' At this point, I still wasn't planning to return. I just wanted to skate again because I hadn't stepped on the ice since I last got off for my last show. I just wanted to get back on and see how skates felt, the whole thing. That first session, I tried the double Axel, and I could do it.

Training and Current Status

Liu decided to return to her former coaches, Phillip DiGuglielmo and Massimo Scali. Because she was a student at UCLA, Liu moved her training base to Lakewood Ice in Lakewood, California. Since DiGuglielmo and Scali are based in the Bay Area, Liu primarily works with them remotely.

In October 2024, Liu competed at the 2024 CS Budapest Trophy, her first competition since March 2022. In the short program, she under-rotated the second half of her triple-triple combination but otherwise skated cleanly, scoring 68.83 points and ranking in first place. Going on to compete on the 2024-25 Grand Prix series, Liu placed second in the short program at 2024 Skate Canada International but seventh in the free skate because three of her jumps were scored as underrotated. She placed sixth overall. Liu later said that she was happy to be competing again: "I'd say my last two years skating before I was kind of, you know, a little out of it. I wasn't totally in it. So this time, it's a little bit differe…

As of her comeback season, Liu has reestablished herself inside the ISU’s top-10 world rankings. Her consistent placements at Grand Prix events and her world championship bronze helped boost her profile before her brief retirement.

Skating Style and Influences

Liu is known for blending contemporary and classical styles, often choosing music that highlights her expressive side. She is also known for her bubbly and quirky personality and her love of music, dance, art, and photography. She is an advocate for body positivity and self-acceptance, using her platform to promote positive messages about self-image and self-love.

Exchange the delicate, ballerina-like skating dresses with bold, modern asymmetrical designs. Undo the tight, slicked back bun and bring in halo dyed hair, dark eyeliner and the piercing she did herself on the inside of her upper lip. With three horizontal stripes dyed into her hair, each layer represents a year of the new life Liu is finally happy to put on display.

“I want to be seen more because I like what I have going on,” Liu said. “I like what I’m doing.”

Sponsors and Endorsements

Liu has worked with several sponsors since her teenage rise, with companies drawn to her status as a prodigy and trailblazer. After Beijing 2022, she gained more visibility, and her 2024 comeback sparked renewed interest. Like many elite skaters, Liu relies on custom boots and blades designed to withstand the pounding of triple Axels and quads. She has used brands such as Edea for boots and John Wilson for blades, both staples among top international skaters.

Life Outside of Skating

Away from the rink, Liu enjoys the same pursuits as many young adults her age. She’s a student at UCLA, balancing training with study. She loves exploring new cities and spending time with her siblings. Reading, art, hiking and music are among her creative outlets, offering her balance from the intensity of training.

Liu has built a solid following on Instagram, with hundreds of thousands of fans keeping up with her training, travels, and glimpses of life outside skating. She is the oldest of five siblings, all born through surrogate mothers and egg donors - something her father, Arthur, openly has spoken about. She speaks Mandarin, thanks to her family’s heritage.

Challenges and Future Goals

Liu’s biggest challenges are both physical and mental. After a two-year break, sustaining peak conditioning over a full season can be demanding. The women’s field also is deeper than ever, with many skaters pushing the technical envelope. Beyond competition, the pressure of expectations will test her resilience.

Liu is training to bring back her triple Axel, which would give her the technical arsenal to challenge the world’s best.

An Olympic medal would transform Liu’s story from that of a prodigy to that of a legend.

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