Eileen Gu responds to hate only way she knows how — with a gold medal to cap mighty Olympics for China
Eileen Gu responds to hate only way she knows how — with a gold medal to cap mighty Olympics for China originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Eileen Gu hears all the noise, the hate, the criticism.
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It all stems from her decision, at 15 years old, to represent China in international skiing competition, not the United States.
Gu’s mother is from China. Gu grew up in California. And it makes her the target of political controversy.
When asked about it, Gu handles the situation with grace. She shares, over and over, that this is about representation. She says she sees lots of female athlete role models in the U.S., and that it’s not the same for China, the country of her heritage.
That’s why she chose to compete for China when she was 15.
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Now, years later, all Gu can do beyond say the right things is win.
And she definitely wins.
Gu won her third medal of these 2026 Winter Olympics on Sunday, and it was golden.
She took the title with an epic showing in the women’s skiing halfpipe competition. It was a defense of her 2022 gold medal, as well.
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Gu has competed in six career Olympic events.
She has won six Olympic medals.
Still a student at Stanford University, Gu also has a case as the greatest in her sport.
She will always have haters. But that hasn’t slowed down her brilliance.
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When Gu straps into her skis, there isn’t anyone better.