Early Life and Education of Alysa Liu: A Complete Timeline

How education and upbringing influenced the life of Alysa Liu. A timeline of key moments.

Alysa Liu is a highly accomplished American figure skater. Her achievements include a 2026 Olympic Games team event gold medal, the 2025 World championship, a 2022 World bronze medal, the 2025-26 Grand Prix Final championship, multiple Grand Prix and Challenger Series medals, and two U.S. national titles. She competed in the 2022 Winter Olympics at the age of 16, finishing sixth individually. As a junior skater, she earned a World Junior bronze medal, a Junior Grand Prix Final silver medal, multiple Junior Grand Prix titles, and a U.S. junior national title.

Sections (4)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements Success & Recognition

1989: Arthur Liu's Exile

In the 1990s, Alysa Liu's father, Arthur Liu, went into exile from Guangzhou, China, due to the persecution of participants in the 1989 Democracy Movement. The exile started when he was 25 years old.

August 8, 2005: Alysa Liu's Birth

On August 8, 2005, Alysa Liu was born, marking the beginning of her life and future figure skating career.

December 2019: Featured on Cover of International Figure Skating Magazine

In December 2019, Alysa Liu was selected to be on the cover of the December 2019 edition of International Figure Skating Magazine.

2019: Made Appearances on Various Shows

Following her win at the 2019 U.S. Championships, Alysa Liu made appearances on Today, The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, and the 2019 Kids' Choice Awards, where she presented an award to Lindsey Vonn.

December 2020: Joined Team Toyota

In early December 2020, Team Toyota announced Alysa Liu as one of the new additions to its roster of sponsored athletes.

2020: Limited Social Media Use

In 2020, Alysa Liu limited her social media use because she found it "not worth it" and "exhausting."

June 2021: Graduated from High School

In June 2021, Alysa Liu graduated from high school at the age of 15.

November 2021: Targeted by Chinese Spies

In November 2021, Alysa Liu and her father were targeted by spies allegedly under the direction of the Chinese government, as part of an operation to collect private information on Chinese political dissidents living in the United States. This event was reported in March 2022.

March 2022: Targeted by Chinese Spies

In March 2022, it was reported that Alysa Liu and her father were targeted in November 2021 by spies allegedly directed by the Chinese government, who were collecting private information on Chinese political dissidents in the United States.

April 9, 2022: Announces Retirement from Figure Skating

On April 9, 2022, Alysa Liu announced her retirement from figure skating on Instagram. She felt satisfied with her career, had completed her goals, and was "moving on with [her] life". She stated that she didn't enjoy skating a lot of the time.

2022: Stepped Away from Sport

In 2022, Alysa Liu stepped away from the sport.

2022: Signed Deal with American Girl and Modeled Ralph Lauren

In 2022, leading up to the Winter Olympics in Beijing, Alysa Liu signed a deal with toy manufacturer American Girl, and modeled Ralph Lauren's collection for Team USA's opening ceremony uniforms.

2023: Enrolled at UCLA

In the fall of 2023, Alysa Liu enrolled at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where she currently studies psychology.

March 1, 2024: Announces Comeback to Figure Skating

On March 1, 2024, Alysa Liu posted a video on her Instagram announcing her return to figure skating for the 2024-25 season. She stated skiing gave her an adrenaline rush similar to skating, which led her to try skating again and rediscovering her ability to do a double Axel.

March 2, 2025: Participated in Legacy on Ice

On March 2, 2025, Alysa Liu participated in Legacy on Ice, an ice show organized by U.S. Figure Skating that paid tribute to lives lost aboard American Eagle Flight 5342.

2025: Discarded Olympic Season Short Program

In late September 2025, Alysa Liu announced that she would discard her Olympic season short program to the song "This Is How It Feels" by D4vd and Laufey, due to external issues related to the artist D4vd, and would pursue a different direction aligned with her values.

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2026: Returned to The Tonight Show and Featured on 60 Minutes

Before the 2026 Winter Olympics, Alysa Liu returned to The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and was featured on 60 Minutes.

2026: Partnered with Nike and Samsung Galaxy

Heading into the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina, Alysa Liu partnered with Nike and Samsung Galaxy. She also appeared in a commercial for Gillette Venus.