Alysa Liu on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine.

For years, Alysa Liu's life followed a relentless routine: wake up, arrive at the ice rink at 7 a.m., train until evening, then repeat the next day. Birthdays, holidays, and many teenage memories blurred into this cycle, to the point that Liu later admitted she barely remembered that period.

"I blocked out memories of that time", Liu confessed in an interview with Rolling Stone on 7/3. "Perhaps it was too bad, and I didn't want to remember it".

Alysa Liu began figure skating at five years old when her father took her and her sister to the rink. She loved the sensation of gliding quickly and enjoyed falling and getting back up to skate again. Her talent emerged early, leading to rapid progress and a quick transition from group lessons to serious training.

However, her life diverged from that of normal children as she entered her teenage years. Every day, Liu was at the rink from 7 a.m. until dark. Her training schedule, sometimes lasting up to 12 hours, made time feel like a loop. "I didn't like being at the rink from morning to night", Liu stated. "But I still practiced daily, fearing that if I missed one day, I'd forget all my jumps".

Each time she fell during practice, she would cry. Not from pain, but from the pressure to be perfect. The coaching staff was strict. Liu described constantly feeling in a "fight or flight" state, a survival response to extreme stress.

Days blended into one another, blurring her memories. Birthdays and holidays were often missed. Her childhood was almost entirely consumed by spins and jumps.

At 13 years old, Liu became the youngest champion of the U.S. National Figure Skating Championships. Standing only about 1,4 meters tall, she needed assistance to reach the podium to accept her medal.

The victory instantly turned Liu into a media sensation. She was hailed as the future of American figure skating. Yet, early glory brought immense pressure. In the training environment, everything, even seemingly minor details, was tightly controlled.

Liu recounted that she was sometimes restricted from drinking water due to concerns about weight gain from hydration. "They told me I should just rinse my mouth", she recalled. "It was insane".

Alysa Liu poses with her gold medal after winning the women's singles event at the 2019 U.S. Figure Skating Championships at Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, Michigan on 25/1/2019. *Photo: USA Today Sports*

Off the ice, her life also became restricted. From 6th grade, to dedicate more time to training, Liu switched to homeschooling instead of attending school with her peers. This proved a significant challenge.

She has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and struggled with independent learning. While her friends experienced school life, Liu spent most of her teenage years on the ice. Homework often got delayed. "I hated homeschooling", Liu said. "I really struggled to get through it".

The ages of 14 to 16 were the most demanding. Liu left her home in Oakland, California, to move to Colorado Springs, Colorado, to train at the U.S. Olympic training center. During the Covid-19 pandemic, she lived almost entirely alone. Daily, she would take an Uber from her dormitory to the ice rink and back. "That was my life", she said. "Commuting only between two places, day after day".

Even her coaches were not always present. During many training sessions, Liu skated alone on the vast rink. A sense of loneliness accumulated within her.

'Ice Angel' Alysa Liu: Memorable career moments.

Liu's father, Arthur Liu, significantly influenced her career. A Chinese-born lawyer, he participated in the student movement during the 1989 Thien An Mon protests before moving to the U.S. to start a new life.

The single father raised five children and invested heavily in his eldest daughter's skating career. Investments in coaching, competitions, and trainers were estimated to be hundreds of thousands of USD. Arthur Liu even brought a radar gun to the rink to measure the speed of his daughter's jumps. At times, he disguised himself to observe how coaches trained.

Her father's dedication was both a motivation and a source of pressure. When Liu decided to retire after the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, her father disagreed. So, when she later returned to competition, his joyful reaction bothered Liu.

"I was almost angry that he was happy", she stated. "I thought he shouldn't have an opinion on that decision".

After the 2022 Olympics, Liu unexpectedly announced her retirement at just 16 years old. The decision was posted on Instagram with almost no prior warning. She wanted to live like a normal teenager.

Alysa Liu competes in the women's free skate event at the 2022 Winter Olympics at Capital Indoor Stadium, Beijing, Trung Quoc on 17/2/2022. *Photo: Reuters*

During her time away from the ice, Liu learned to drive, traveled for the first time with friends, and enrolled in psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). These simple experiences brought her a sense of freedom.

Two years later, a ski trip with friends changed everything. The feeling of racing down a mountain slope, the cold wind, and the speed reminded Liu why she once loved skating. She decided to return to the ice, initially just once a week.

But the first return was not easy. Liu said stepping onto the ice scared her. Old memories flooded back. If her best friend hadn't been with her, she believes she wouldn't have returned a second time.

Gradually, the joy of skating returned. This time, Liu set a principle: all decisions must be her own choice, from music and costumes to diet. "No one is allowed to starve me or tell me what to eat", she said.

Less than one year after resuming training, Liu won a world championship. And at Milano-Cortina 2026, she secured two Olympic gold medals. But for Liu, this victory is not the end of her healing journey. She understands that those demanding years shaped who she is today. "If I hadn't hit rock bottom many times, I couldn't have risen", Liu reflected. "I wouldn't change my past".

For America's "Ice Angel", those painful, haunting memories are part of the path to the top.

Xuan Binh compiled