Eileen Gu learns of heartbreaking personal loss just moments after winning Winter Olympics gold
Eileen Gu has revealed that her Olympic gold medal on Sunday was secured against a backdrop of family grief after her grandmother passed away.
The Chinese star was only told of the news in the minutes between clinching her halfpipe victory in Livigno and attending a press conference to discuss how it was won.
After arriving later than scheduled, the 22-year-old said: ‘The reason I was late is that I just found out that my grandma passed away. She was a really big part of my life growing up and someone I looked up to immensely.’
In offering a heartfelt tribute to Feng Guozhen, Gu, whose middle name is Feng, added: ‘She was so strong, she was a fighter and I think what’s so interesting is that a lot of people just cruise through life but she was a steamship.
‘This woman commanded life and she grabbed it by the reins and she made it into what she wanted it to be and she inspired me so much. The last time I saw her before I came to the Olympics she was very sick so I knew that this was a possibility.
‘I didn’t promise her that I was going to win but I did promise her that I was going to be brave like she has been brave and that’s why I keep referring to this theme of betting on myself and being brave and taking risks.
Eileen Gu clinched her first gold medal of the 2026 Winter Olympics on Sunday
The 22-year-old learned her grandma had passed away moments after topping the podium
‘It actually goes back to that promise that I made my grandma and so I’m really happy that I was able to uphold that and hopefully do her proud but it’s also a really difficult time for me now so I really apologise for being late but that’s what was going on.’
The date of Feng’s passing is unknown.
Gu, already the highest profile at these Games, strengthened her sporting legacy with a sixth Olympic medal, with her gold and two silvers here adding to two golds won at Beijing 2022.
But she will return to her studies at Stanford at the centre of an ongoing backlash against her decision to change nationalities from the US to China prior to the Beijing Olympics. In recent days, US vice president JD Vance has joined the chorus of those taking a swipe at Gu, who is now the most successful freestyle skier in history.
Celebrating her latest gold, Gu said: ‘I’m so proud of how I’ve done this Olympics. I chose to do three events knowing that I had to train halfpipe in two months, knowing that I would miss the half-pipe training in case I made big air finals, which I also hadn’t competed in in four years.
‘Being able to really trust myself that when it came down to the moment, that I would be able to perform to the best of my ability regardless of medal colour or medal in general – that’s a big bet. And also the difficulty of competing in three events, making finals in three events. I had to compete six times.
‘I kind of liken it to a marathon, but the pace of a 100m dash. Because every day is the Olympics. I have to give 100 per cent every day. So there’s no day that I can just chill a little, because every day matters.
‘So I guess what I mean to say with that is I have done something that I took a big risk in trusting myself, and I’m glad that I did.
The Olympic champion revealed that Feng Guozhen had been sick before the Games
The freestyle skier is pictured with her mother, Yan Gu (left), and her grandmother, Feng
‘I walk away as the most decorated free skier of all time, male or female, and the most gold medals of any free skier ever, male or female. And that is something that I’m so, so proud of. It’s unbelievable to me. It’s still surreal.’
The heartbreak is just the latest blow in a challenging Games for Gu, who has had to weather a storm of criticism over her choice to represent China, despite being born and raised in the United States.
Gu had already won a pair of silvers earlier in the Games in the slopestyle and big air. Yet, they had felt somewhat underwhelming in the shadow of her haul from the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
But Gu, who had won two golds in Beijing, on Sunday by adding another to her collection, taking her total to six medals in six events across her Winter Olympic career.
Growing up in San Francisco, learning to ski in Lake Tahoe, and being immersed in American culture, Gu – the daughter of an American father and a Chinese mother – represented Team USA until the age of 15 when she switched to the country of her mother’s birth.
Her allegiance came under heavy criticism from American fans, who claimed her decision was solely motivated by sponsorship money from China.
Gu has banked a staggering $23 million over the past year, yet a look at her books reveals a mystery that has left the sports world scratching its head.
Of that eye-watering fortune, it is estimated that only about $20,000 actually came from endeavors on the slopes.
Gu hailed her grandmother as ‘strong’ and ‘a fighter’ in a heartfelt tribute
Gu has had to weather a storm of criticism at the Games over her decision to represent China
However, Gu strongly denied that the opportunity to earn more money – through representing Chinese companies – did not play a role in her decision.
‘I’m glad that there’s enough money in the sport now for people to think that’s a consideration,’ the Olympic champion told TIME Magazine last month.
Gu explained that she wanted to represent China because she believed she could inspire more youngsters – especially girls – to take up freestyle skiing, which wasn’t popular in her mother’s homeland.
‘The US already has the representation,’ Gu told Time Magazine. ‘I like building my own pond.’
