The world has officially fallen in love with figure skater Alysa Liu, whose joyful women’s free skate at the Winter Olympics awarded her the United States’ first gold medal in the sport since 2002.
It wasn’t just her impressive hardware that resonated with audiences; it was also her inspirational story: At age 16, Liu famously quit skating to focus on her mental health and well-being before mounting an ambitious comeback two years later. Success after such a hiatus was practically unheard of, let alone a run at the Olympic Games.
Now 20 years old and an Olympic champion, Liu is very much still in the afterglow of her performance. Speaking to Glamour from Milan, Liu sits casually in an armchair with two massive gold medals slung around her neck; her countenance serene as she recounts the final minute of her free skate.
“It was honestly bliss,” she says. “I just heard and saw the crowd. Everyone was getting pretty riled up, and I was like, This is exactly what I want. And so I just carried that energy with me to finish off my performance.”
Liu had previously stated that the possibility of a medal would be inconsequential to her performance. She isn’t sure if, ironically, that mindset helped her win.
“I don’t really know, but the best part is, it doesn’t matter to me,” she says. “I take my mental health really seriously. I really try to protect my peace, and so wins or losses, I don’t feel it, really."
Set to the glittering soundtrack of Donna Summers’s “MacArthur Park,” Liu’s routine was a master class in living in the moment. Even after winning gold, Liu is more focused on bottling up the feeling of her skate instead. “Speaking about the gold, other people around me are more hype, but I’m still stuck on my performance,” she says. “I’m still in that moment, so it’s kind of nice. I love being chill about it.”
Ahead, Alyssa Liu shares her must-have competition day products, the best thing she ate in Italy, and her advice for creating healthy boundaries in work and life.
Glamour: Before you went to the podium, you had to grab your Rare Beauty lip oil. What are other essential products you need on competition day?
Alyssa Liu: Yeah, so my makeup routine is kind of simple because I like to be kind of quick with it, but I use black eye shadow, usually. I’m going to talk about Rare Beauty products again because I really use a lot of it. The gel liner and then their eyebrow pencil. I use eyebrow pencil a lot. It could sub for anything. And then highlighter and contour.
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
Are you a superstitious athlete? Are there any good luck rituals you have before a competition?
I’m not superstitious at all. In fact, I wouldn’t call this a dream, but I really want to try to do all the superstitions to see if I don’t perform well. I want to kind of test it out. An experiment of sorts.
Speaking of gold, where are you going to keep or display your Olympic medals when you get home?
I did not think about that. I’ll probably just keep them in the box and put them somewhere where I probably shouldn’t disclose.
Have you been able to explore Italy at all? What’s the best thing you’ve done or eaten?
Yeah, my schedule here has been really good because after the team event, I had so much time in between, so I went to Bergamo a ton. I even spent three consecutive nights there and was training and also just chilling, getting away from the athletes village for a sec. I also went to Lake Como, and that’s where I had the best tiramisu, actually, at this restaurant in Lake Como. So it’s been fun to just roam around.
After a long day of practice, what’s your shower routine?
First, I start by just standing there for a long time. Then I wash my body first. I use the Moisture Glide Venus Razor, and then I start with my hair. I shampoo twice because that’s what I’ve been told to do by professionals…watch me be wrong, watch me be wrong! And then I use a hair mask or conditioner. I like honey hair products. There’s this one Japanese brand I use for body wash. It’s really good. And then I use hair oil after.
.png)
.png)
.png)
It’s hard to break out of routines that give us burnout or drain our spirit. What advice do you have for anyone hoping to create more boundaries in their life?
You’ve got to take a risk, and you have to trust the process. That’s a big thing. You’ve got to trust yourself and surround yourself with people who are optimistic.
Ariana Yaptangco is the senior beauty editor at Glamour.
