Ailing (Eileen) Gu goes viral having lunch during qualifying - Chinese superstar reveals her Beijing 2022 "travel essential"

This is not how Beijing 2022 superstar Ailing (Eileen) Gu had envisioned the women's freestyle ski slopestyle qualifying going.

A disappointing first run on Tuesday (14 February) left her on the verge of missing the final. Her second run would be decisive. As she reached the finish area, the 2021 world champion knew she had improved, but would it be enough?

TV viewers around the globe didn't see the Chinese freeskier sporting a nervous glance or air of relief... they instead saw her eating.

"I didn't have time to stay in the lodge and eat lunch. I brought lunch at the bottom [and] was eating while I was waiting for the score," Gu shared with Olympics.com, explaining that a weather delay had caused changes to her practice schedules and meal times in the Genting Snow Park.

"I compete in three events, and so because slopestyle got pushed back, it actually interfered with [halfpipe] training. So pipe training had already started when I was starting my second run of [slopestyle] qualifiers.

"I am a very aggressive practiser. Some people take it more easy during practise. But for me personally..., practice is 'go, go, go.' So I know I wouldn't have time [to eat]. I kind of skipped all the media. I think I set a world record for making it through the media zone, I was like, 'Sorry, sorry, sorry.'

Gu's scores were good enough to see her through to Tuesday's final, and she did admit to nerves, but it wasn't just in the finish area that the big air gold medallist was inhaling lunch.

"I was eating on the T-bar (surface lift to the halfpipe). I was done by the time I got to the top, and was ready to drop it immediately, so had a good couple of hours of pipe practice."

When pictures of her hasty snack went viral on the @Olympics