February 26, 2026
Olympic Gold Medalist Speaks Out in Defense of Father Amid Controversy
Liu defends her father, speaks out on Chinese government repression against dissidents
Published February 26, 2026

Olympian Alyssa Liu recently earned the praise and adoration of millions of Americans after taking home the gold medal in both team and singles figure skating at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

While her reception in America has been mostly positive, some people have asked questions about her and her father’s backgrounds, prompting her to defend her father on Instagram.

Liu’s father is reportedly a Chinese dissident who participated in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, causing him to flee to the United States after the Chinese government massacred hundreds of protesters.

Just days after Liu’s performance at the Winter Olympics, she spoke up in defense of her father, saying that she is “proud” of her father’s role in the protests and that people shouldn’t speak on a topic they don’t understand. (RELATED: El Mencho’s Death Triggers Cartel Violence Across Mexico)

Liu and her father continued to face repression from the Chinese government after moving to the United States, as they reported being spied on by the Chinese government in 2022 before the Beijing Olympics.

“They are probably just trying to intimidate us, to… in a way threaten us not to say anything, to cause trouble to them and say anything political or related to human rights violations in China… I had concerns about her safety. The U.S. government did a good job protecting her,” Liu’s father said at the time.

Some people have drawn a contrast between Liu and Eileen Gu, a female Olympic skier with accolades of her own who has faced criticism for competing for China. Gu was born and raised in the United States and attended Stanford University, but has competed for China in the Olympics since 2019. (RELATED: Milwaukee Schools Face $46M Deficit as Scrutiny Over Education Spending Intensifies)

“I certainly think that somebody who grew up in the United States of America, who benefited from our education system, from the freedoms and liberties that make this country a great place, I would hope that they want to compete with the United States of America,” Vice President JD Vance recently said.