Eileen Gu ‘feels renewed sense of infatuation with skiing’ ahead of 2026 Winter Olympics
The 22-year-old who represents China also said about the upcoming Games: ‘I am here to have the most fun and be fully present in this experience’
Eileen Gu said on Tuesday she was entering her second Winter Olympics with new-found love and a different approach to her sport after feeling stuck in recent years.
Gu acknowledged that the last year had been marred by injuries, limited training time and the demands of full-time study, leaving her to “live contest to contest”.
“Now I feel this renewed sense of infatuation with skiing itself, with competing for the sake of sportsmanship and Olympic values,” she shared on social media.
“No matter what results will follow, I am here to have the most fun and be fully present in this experience,” she added.
The 22-year-old Gu, who balances her professional training with studies at Stanford as well as a high-profile modelling and sponsorship portfolio, said the change in mindset started after the Secret Garden World Cup, held in Zhangjiakou, China in December.
Gu kept her perfect record at the Genting Resort Secret Garden intact, battling challenging conditions and some brief self-doubt to claim gold in the first Halfpipe World Cup of the 2025-26 season.