Alysa Liu shines in return at 2026 Olympics after brief figure skating retirement

Alysa Liu is back where she belongs.

Liu, who became the youngest U.S. champion figure skater at age 13, then retired three years later after the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, put on a standout performance in her return to the sport’s biggest stage on Friday, finishing in second-place of the women’s singles short program qualifier with a score of 74.90, behind Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto (78.88).

Nearly halfway through the team event, Team USA is in first place (25 points) — Liu contributed nine points — followed by Japan (23) and Italy (22). 

“I feel hype. I feel really good right now,” Liu told reporters after the event. “People ask me about my mindset, which I’m really proud of. It took a lot to get here, and so I’m glad that I can share it on a global stage.”

Alysa Liu of United States performs during women’s short program.. REUTERS

Liu, 20, made her return to the ice in 2024 after trying “every hobby in existence” and enjoying the free time rarely afforded to her growing up, then captured a gold medal at the 2025 World Championships.

In the 2022 Olympics, the California native finished sixth overall.

“I started when I was 5 and I basically didn’t stop until 16, and I was homeschooled my whole life,” Liu told NBC News before the Olympics. “And I’m a very social person. I crave human connection. And I was living by myself for many years, no family, no friends around, all for the sake of training.

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“And I didn’t even pick my own programs, like people put me in dresses that I didn’t want to wear, I was literally just like a dress-up doll and I didn’t want to do it, but I felt like I had to do my duty of going to the Olympics for my younger self.”

Now, there is no pressure. Just the chance to perform.

Alysa Liu of Team United States celebrates with her team in the Kiss and Cry zone after competing in the Women’s Single Skating – Short Program. Getty Images

“I don’t know what’s up with me,” Liu said Friday. “They’re going to actually have to dissect my brain when I’m dead and figure me out.”