The 2026 Winter Olympics saw American figure skater Amber Glenn fall short of expectations in her short program at the women’s figure skating event. After she failed to complete the triple toe loop and ended up losing the opportunity, all she could do was walk out of the arena with teary eyes. Amid the heavy criticism surrounding her failure, Olympian Alysa Liu stepped forward with a firm backing.

She applauded her hard work while shedding light on the struggles she underwent during this period.

“Oh gosh, she’s gone through so much, and she actually worked freaking hard — genuinely such a hard worker — and she’s overcome a lot,” Liu said.

“I just want her to be happy. That’s all I want. I’ll be seeing her later.”

At 26 years old, Glenn was competing in her first Olympic Games and had strong hopes of doing well. However, her short program did not go the way she wanted.

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Glenn’s routine was set to Madonna’s “Like a Prayer.” She started strongly by landing a difficult triple axel, which is one of the hardest jumps in women’s figure skating. However, she ended up committing a major mistake later in the program.

Instead of landing the planned triple jump combination, she performed a “fateful error.” This resulted in zero points for that element, lowering her score and hurting her chances of finishing near the top.

When Glenn finished skating, she immediately got emotional.

She cried, leaving the ice, and later broke down in tears while waiting for her score.

Her final score was 67.39, which placed her 13th after the short program. This was disappointing because she had entered the Olympics as one of the top American skaters.

Glenn had been performing amazingly before the Olympics.

She had won the 2026 U.S. Figure Skating Championships and was seen as one of the country’s strongest medal hopes. Now, while the conclusion was saddening for Glenn, she surely earned a lifetime memory with Madonna’s comments.

When Amber Glenn had a dream-come-true moment with Madonna

Amber Glenn walked into the women’s short program at the 2026 Winter Olympics carrying more than just her training and hopes. She also carried a special message from one of the most popular singers in the world.

Just before she stepped onto the ice, Glenn received a surprise video from Madonna, whose famous song “Like a Prayer” was the music for her routine.

The short clip showed Madonna praising Glenn and encouraging her.

“I have to tell you, I was blown away by it,” Madonna shared in the video.

“You are an incredible skater. So strong, so beautiful, so brave. I can’t imagine that you would not win. So I just want to say good luck. Go get that gold.”

Glenn could hardly believe what she was seeing. She covered her mouth in shock and felt overwhelmed by the support.

“I’m in shock. I’m in complete shock,” she exclaimed. “I’m legitimately shaking. Oh my God.”

However, Glenn’s Olympic journey faced some challenges, too.

There was confusion over music rights for her free skate program, which used “The Return” by Seb McKinnon. The artist said he had not given permission at first, but later spoke with Glenn, and they worked out the situation.

“I’m very honored that Amber chose my music for her routine, won gold no less!” He added, “I’m happy things were resolved amicably and that we both stand for the protection of artist rights.”

Meanwhile, Amber Glenn was not the only American skater getting attention.

Her teammates, Alysa Liu and Isabeau Levito, were also on the list and were called the “Blade Angels.” Even Taylor Swift supported them by helping with a special NBC promotion.

But Madonna’s message turned out to be even more meaningful as Glenn had joked about it in the past.

“If I do get a message from Madonna saying she doesn’t want me to skate to her music, I’ll just be excited to get a message from Madonna.”