The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics will have quite a few intense showdowns with some of the greatest — and newest — athletes in the world. And it looks like one of the phenoms will be competing for the U.S., as Alysa Liu was recently named to the official figure skating team, alongside U.S. champion Mariah Bell and runner-up Karen Chen. At the age of 16, Alysa has taken the skating world by storm, winning numerous contests and making history with her ambitious jumps along the way. Find out more about the teen prodigy right here!
1. Alysa Began Skating At The Age Of 5
Born Aug. 8, 2005 in Clovis, California, Alysa began figure skating with the help of her father at the tender age of five. Soon afterwards, her father found a coach for Alysa in former competitive figure skater, Laura Lipensky. With Laura’s help, Alysa became the youngest skater in history and third American woman ever to land a triple axel in an international competition by the age of 12!
2. She Has A Ton Of Medals Already
Alysa’s career has already been blessed with a U.S. National Championship in 2019 and 2020, making her the youngest woman to ever win one at the age of 13. She also became the youngest person to win two senior national titles at just 14 years old. As a U.S. junior champion, she won three straight years in a row. She took fourth in the 2021 U.S. Championships.
3. Alysa Was First American Woman To Land Quad Jump In Competition
In her first junior international competition in August 2019, Alysa became the first junior American woman to land a quadruple jump in competition and was the first woman in history to successfully complete a triple axel and a quadruple jump in the same program. This was all before the young star had even turned 14!
4. She Had To Withdraw From The U.S. Championships Over Covid
Even though she was forced to withdraw from the U.S. Figure Skating Championship because if a positive Covid test, Alysa’s previous performances, including a hard-fought third place after the short program, clinched her one of the three spots on the U.S. Winter Olympic team. As for how she fared in quarantine while the rest of the skaters competed, Alysa told USA Today, “I watched some Netflix. That’s it. That’s all I’ve been doing. And I don’t know what I’m doing tomorrow or anything. I haven’t had time to talk to my team yet.”
5. Alysa Has Been Called The ‘Simone Biles Of Figure Skating’
Alysa has already been receiving some amazing comparisons to other legendary athletes, including the GOAT gymnast Simone Biles! Olympic bronze medalist and sport commentator Adam Rippon linked the two superstar athletes together back in 2020 in an interview. “Alysa does things so easily, but if you’re an average viewer, you almost don’t appreciate how difficult and revolutionary the program that she’s putting out is,” he added, while speaking with Business Insider.