US Olympian Alysa Liu advances in mission to earn individual medal amid American skating disappointments

A judging controversy erupts at the Winter Olympics after a French judge is accused of giving a boosted score to the home country in the ice dance final, potentially costing Team USA gold.

Alyssa Liu is Team USA's last hope for an individual gold medal in figure skating at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. 

Liu, the reigning world champion, was the only one of America's women's figure skating stars to put herself in contention for gold after the short program on Tuesday night. 

Liu landed a triple Lutz-triple loop, the hardest combination that any woman attempted, and sat only two points back of leader Ami Nakai and right behind her Japanese teammate Kaori Sakamoto on the leaderboard.

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Alysa Liu of the United States performs her routine during the Figure Skating, Women's Singles Skating, Short Program at the Milano Ice Skating Arena at the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games 2026 on February 17th, 2026 in Milan, Italy.   (Tim Clayton/Getty Images)

"I am really happy about how I skated," Liu said after the competition. "And my siblings, my best friends and a ton of my family is out there. And I saw them on the warmup. I also saw them during my program, so, I don’t know. It was a really cool moment, because they never come to watch like this. I’m really glad I did super well. I felt super grounded and I connected with my program on another level."

Fellow American women's skater Amber Glenn finished 13th, falling just one spot short of advancing. Glenn was seen walking off the ice in tears. 

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Alysa Liu poses for a photo following the 2026 Milan Olympics figure skating team announcement show at