Alysa Liu made history at the 2026 Winter Olympics held in Milan-Cortina between February 6 and February 22 by winning gold in both the women’s singles and team figure skating events, ending a 24-year drought for American women in the sport.
Her success brought fame that translated into new sponsorship and endorsement deals, as well as more people recognizing her.
Highlights
- Winter Olympic champion Alysa Liu has opened up about a disturbing airport experience that occurred in the aftermath of her sudden rise to fame.
- The figure skating star’s revelation sparked widespread support online, though some critics argued that intense fan attention comes with fame.
- Despite the challenges of newfound stardom, Liu has been basking in the glory of her victory by making multiple TV appearances.
Stardom, however, almost always comes with downsides, and the case doesn’t appear to be any different for Liu, who recently took to Instagram to detail a terrifying airport experience.
Netizens have sympathized with the athlete following her revelation, with one saying, “Being a celebrity seems like the most horrifying thing of all time,” and another adding, “Humans s**k sometimes, especially when their fixation is someone who is this awesome.”
Alysa Liu has issued a plea to her fans who put her in a difficult situation recently
Image credits: Getty/Jamie Squire
Liu, in the early hours of Thursday, March 5, posted an Instagram story featuring a popular meme picture of a stuffed monkey giving a worried, side-eyed look to the camera.
“So I land at the airport, and there’s a crowd waiting at the exit with cameras and things for me to sign. All up in my personal space. Someone chased me to my car, bruh,” she divulged, before adding, “Please don’t do that.”
Image credits: TeenVogue
The skater did not specify at which airport and when the incident occurred, but social media users rushed to her defense.
“Leave her alone,” requested one, while another echoed, “Please don’t be a creep and stalk Alysa to her car.”
Image credits: svvermaofficial
Image credits: Getty/Matthew Stockman
“Alysa Liu rose to stardom less than a month ago and is already having to speak out about the invasion of privacy. I can’t believe this,” a third added.
“Some people genuinely need to learn what boundaries are,” remarked a fourth, while a fifth wrote, “So many people need to get a life.”
Image credits: NBC
“Supporting someone doesn’t give you the right to invade their space. There’s a difference between support and harassment,” another user commented.
Some, however, called Alysa Liu’s airport incident her fault
Image credits: alysaxliu
“Just a suggestion: stop posting yourself every day on social media. You can’t both want attention and then have a problem with it,” said one.
“Don’t become a celebrity if you can’t handle people being in your space,” advised another.
Image credits: MoonDiver98
Image credits: multi_melstan
“Everybody will forget you in a month or so. Stay humble,” a third stated.
“Don’t whine about being famous,” said a fourth, while a fifth mocked Liu by asking, “Who is she?”
Alysa Liu’s latest social media activity followed an earlier caveat she had issued to her fans
Image credits: TeenVogue
On Monday, February 2, Liu, via her Instagram Story, confirmed that her only social media accounts are her Instagram: @alysaxliu, and her TikTok: @frigouscigious.
“Heard there were some accounts pretending to be me. Hope y’all aren’t falling for them. Don’t get scammed,” she said.
Image credits: coinkong
Image credits: TeenVogue
Liu had fewer than 220,000 followers on Instagram before she participated in the latest Winter Olympics. She now has 7 million followers on the platform.
On TikTok, Liu has 2.9 million followers.
Despite the struggles of stardom, Liu has been basking in it without any sign of discomfort
Image credits: TeenVogue
Liu appeared on the Today show on Monday, where she advised parents against pushing their kids to stay in sports.
“Don’t,” she said during her interview, adding, “It doesn’t work. The kids know themselves pretty well, and it’s just never good to force anything.”
Image credits: digitalnoor356
She also met Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe behind the scenes of her appearance, who refused to wear her medals around his neck as he admitted it would feel like “stolen valor.”
Fans of the pair were delighted by the interaction, with one commenting, “An Olympic winner and Triwizard champion.”
“Nah, Harry Potter was so respectful,” added another.
On Tuesday, Liu stole the spotlight with her appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.
Image credits: alysaxliu
The setup for her introduction included Fallon expressing a need for a “gold necklace” to complement the bracelet he was wearing.
The live audience in the studio leapt to their feet and celebrated the champion with enthusiastic cheers as she stepped into the spotlight with both of her Olympic treasures draped around her neck.
Image credits: 118lesbiella
Image credits: alysaxliu
Liu, who graced the cover of Teen Vogue on March 4, could win more medals soon, as she is scheduled to compete at the World Figure Skating Championships later this month.
She has also expressed interest in competing at the 2030 Winter Olympics.
"It't not hard to not chase someone to their car," a netizen asserted
Image credits: CobyValentine24
Image credits: tinadoy88
Image credits: MENTAL_H1
Image credits: hudwllms
Image credits: jadednaoi
Image credits: timitious
Image credits: jnkrsbplmx0
Image credits: TessaErnst18
Image credits: slimvnsn
Image credits: Ogreentree2
Image credits: CZrunss
Image credits: afterlifeportal
Image credits: Sherrie2527
Image credits: BigImpactHumans
Image credits: damskey4real1
Image credits: NadiaBargach_
Image credits: ma7yanna