By capturing two gold medals in Milan, Alysa Liu didn’t just win; she rewrote history. Her run at the 2026 Winter Olympics snapped a 24-year gold-medal drought for American women in Olympic figure skating, a gap that had lingered since Sarah Hughes stunned the world in 2002. The 20-year-old’s electrifying free skate to Donna Summer’s “MacArthur Park” vaulted her to the top of the podium in the individual event, capturing plenty of hearts in the process. Now, as she plans her return to her hometown, she will be greeted with a surprise.

As reported by the Irish Star, Mayor Barbara Lee has announced that the city is planning a community-wide celebration to honor its double gold medalist, stating, “The City of Oakland is planning a community-wide celebration to honor Olympic gold medalist and Oakland’s hometown hero Alysa Liu. Alysa represents the heart, grit, resilience, and joy of Oakland. Her achievement has filled our city with pride, and we are coordinating with her team now to finalize a date so the community can celebrate her together. Stay tuned for details coming soon.”

Well, Alysa Liu’s journey is surely something. Four years ago, after finishing sixth at the Beijing Olympics as a 16-year-old prodigy, she walked away from the sport entirely, burned out and no longer finding joy on the ice. She enrolled at UCLA, studied psychology, got a piercing, and spent two years exploring what’s out there.

However, during a ski trip with her friends, Liu connected with her competitive spirit, wanting to go through it all again. In 2024, she confirmed her comeback via an Instagram post. The CS Budapest Trophy became her first competition since March 2022, where the world watched her skating clean in the short program, scoring 68.83 points and ranking in first place. Similar to the free skate, she performed well and took gold.

Liu’s breakthrough since her comeback came at the 2025 World Championships in Boston, where she won the gold medal in front of the home crowd. Then, in the 2026 U.S. Championships, she came second behind Amber Glenn and was named to the Olympic roster. And the rest was history.

Two gold medals saw her celebrated nationwide; upon her arrival at San Francisco Airport, the 20-year-old was greeted by a cluster of fans with nothing but cheers. The Olympian then traveled to Alameda, an island community in the East Bay adjacent to Oakland, where she enjoyed a meal at Trabocco, which posted on Facebook: “What an incredible honor to have Oakland’s hero, Alysa Liu, join us at Trabocco this evening!”

Other outlets like Fentons Creamery confirmed that the figure skater will have access to ice cream for the rest of her life. Liu, for her part, has made clear where her loyalties lie. Immediately after her gold medal performance, she skated toward the cameras and delivered a simple, heartfelt message, stating, “Oakland shoutout.”

Oakland’s celebrations for Liu mirror the heartfelt homecomings that other American Olympic champions have received. After winning gold at the 2018 PyeongChang Games, Mikaela Shiffrin returned to Vail/Edwards, Colorado, to a hero’s welcome – a community parade, a key to the city, and ski resort dedications that drew thousands of admirers.

Similarly, Nathan Chen’s 2022 Beijing gold brought Salt Lake City together for a joyful rally at the Utah Olympic Park, complete with fireworks and scholarships established in his honor, lifting both community pride and local tourism.

And for anyone who thinks that she’s done competing, they might be very wrong.

Alysa Liu isn’t backing down from further challenges

“Yeah, I mean, I have no plans to leave yet. I can’t imagine not skating the next year, so…” Alysa Liu told reporters during the closing ceremony of the Milan Olympics. This statement confirmed that the American figure skater had more to offer her fans.

So, the World Figure Skating Championships in Prague from March 24 to 29 will deliver a historic showdown. Indeed, it will feature athletes like Liu and others who were also present at the Games.

“I’m very pleased that almost the entire world elite has decided to come to the World after the Olympic Games. In my view, this proves that Prague and the Czech Republic are appealing not only to fans but also to the athletes themselves,” said Evžen Milčinský, the president of the local organizing committee for the ISU FSWC.

Only time will tell whether Liu can defend her crown, which she secured a year ago in Boston.