MILAN — Alysa Liu had just delivered a nearly flawless free skate Thursday night at the Winter Olympics, one that left a packed crowd inside the Milano Ice Skating Arena standing and roaring, when a television camera zoomed in on the American star as she was heading off the ice.
“That’s what I’m (expletive) talking about!” Liu shouted into the lens.
Oh, they’ll be talking about her for quite a while.
The 20-year-old from the San Francisco Bay Area, who walked away from the sport before finding her way back again — and finding herself in the process — delivered the first women’s figure skating gold medal won by the United States in 24 years. She finished with 226.79 points to upstage Kaori Sakamoto and Ami Nakai, the Japanese teammates who took silver and bronze, respectively, at the Milan Cortina Games.
“I think my story is more important than anything to me,” Liu said, the jewelry from her upper lip’s frenulum piercing glinting in the light as she smiled, “and that’s what I will hold dear, and this journey has been incredible, and my life has just been — I have no complaints.”