Eileen Gu is confident in her talent as a freestyle skier — and she’s wearing all of her Olympic medals with pride.
With two new silvers around her neck at the 2026 Winter Olympics, Gu is now the most decorated female freestyle skier in Olympic history.
And at a press conference after her second-place finish in freeski slopestyle on Feb. 16, she chose not to entertain a journalist who asked whether she viewed her 2026 finishes as “two silvers gained or two golds lost” in a response that has since gone viral on social media.
“I’m the most decorated female freeskier in history. I think that’s an answer in and of itself,” said Gu, who laughed loudly before answering. “How do I say this? Winning a medal at the Olympics is a life-changing experience for every athlete. Doing it five times is exponentially harder.”
The 22-year-old — who was born and raised in the U.S. but competes for China — said that each medal that she wins is “equally hard” for her, and at the same time, “expectations rise” with each of her successes.
“The two medals lost situation, to be quite frank with you, I think is kind of a ridiculous perspective to take. I’m showcasing my best skiing,” she said. “I’m doing things that quite literally have never been done before and so I think that is more than good enough, but thank you.”
Gu won two gold medals and a silver in Beijing, and will compete for her third medal at the Milan Cortina Games on Thursday, Feb. 19 in freeski halfpipe.
Eileen Gu on Feb. 14 at the 2026 Winter Olympics.Patrick Smith/Getty
The star athlete has been open about the backlash she’s faced upon choosing to compete for China, but said her Olympics journey has been nothing but positive, even more so this time around.
“I’m here because I want to be, not just because it’s the default option for me. I’ve said if I wanted to retire and feel good about myself for the rest of my life I could, but I don’t because I love this sport now more than ever,” she said at the press conference. “The feeling of pushing past who I was yesterday and becoming a little bit better tomorrow is something that is truly addictive and something that I’m so in love with. I think last Olympics was an opportunity and this Olympics is a privilege.”
