American Chinese figure skater, Alysa Liu, has become the star of the 2026 Milan Winter Olympics. Just a week after winning the first women’s individual figure skating Olympic gold medal for the United States in 24 years, Liu gained 5.3 million followers on Instagram on Tuesday, February 24th.
Liu ultimately clinched the gold medal in women’s singles skating for Team USA, marking the first gold in the discipline for the United States since 2002. This instantly propelled her to global stardom, capturing the hearts of loyal fans from diverse backgrounds and beliefs within the American team.
Before the Winter Olympics began, Liu had fewer than 300,000 Instagram followers. However, her outstanding performance in the women’s final catapulted her to worldwide fame.
Meanwhile, despite being born and raised in the US, ski star Gu Ai Ling, representing the Chinese team, also earned one gold and two silver medals. This brought her total Olympic medal count to six (three gold medals). However, Gu’s Instagram following currently lags behind Liu’s, with only 3.7 million followers.
Before the Olympics, Gu had over 2.1 million followers, showing a notable growth in her fan base. Nonetheless, her increase in followers pales in comparison to the rapid growth of Liu’s fan base.
During this Olympic period, these two Chinese-American stars have been constantly compared on social media by netizens. Both athletes are children of immigrants from China to the US and reside in California, yet their stories diverge significantly.
Liu Meixian’s family chose to represent the US team. Her father, Liu Jun, was studying at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou during the Tiananmen Square events in 1989, organizing demonstrations and hunger strikes. Liu Jun stated to NTD Television that he led demonstrations in Guangzhou and became the city’s most-wanted student post the Tiananmen crackdown.
Amid reports that the Chinese Communist Party tried to persuade Liu Jun’s daughter to change nationality and represent China in the Olympics, Liu Jun affirmed, “I cannot let my daughter represent the Chinese Communist Party in the Olympics, no matter how much money they offer. I won’t even consider it.”
Prior to the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, due to her father’s past and her refusal to compete for China, Liu Meixian and her family became targets of Chinese espionage.
Following their participation in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, Gu Ai Ling represented China, while Liu Meixian represented the United States.
Now, after her success in 2026, Liu Meixian has become one of the most popular figures in the Western world, especially in the United States and among conservative circles.
Numerous influential conservatives on social media have praised Liu Meixian for winning historic gold for America, including figures like Megyn Kelly, Clay Travis, and Dave Portnoy.
One user, Bonchie, expressed on a platform, “I don’t care if US Olympic champion Liu Meixian is a liberal. She wears the American flag and fights for the country, not taking money from Communist China.”
Another user, HansMahncke, wrote on a platform, highlighting Liu’s resilience and patriotism, contrasting it with the easy immigration journey of Gu Ai Ling’s mother.
Gu Ai Ling won a gold medal in the women’s mogul skiing final on Sunday, but her controversial decision to compete for China in this Olympics has brought her pressure.