Here is everything you need to know about Eileen Gu
Eileen Gu, also known by her Chinese name, Gu Ailing, is a Chinese-American freeski prodigy and Gen.T honouree. Born in the United States, Gu started skiing when she was three years old, going on to become junior group champion of the USA Snowboard and Freeski Association aged nine. In 2019, at the age of 15, she made her “biggest decision”, opting to compete for China at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games.
Here are five things you need to know about Gu.
1. She earned her first World Cup victory at fifteen years old
Gu won her first World Cup victory at the FIS Freeski World Cup Slopestyle in Seiser Alm, Italy in 2019. “I’m still buzzing from winning today,” Gu said to US Ski and Snowboard. “Coming into the final run of three after messing up my first two definitely wasn’t easy, especially after qualifying first into finals. I just tried to focus on the little things in my run and it looks like it paid off! When I received my score I was astounded and ecstatic to get my first World Cup win.”
2. She’s representing China at the 2022 Winter Olympics
“My goal is to win Olympic gold [at Beijing 2022],” Gu told Olympics.com. “That to me is just representative of excellence in sport; it's the top achievement undisputedly. And so, that would be so rewarding for all the work that I've done to achieve greatness in the sport. But I think beyond that, I really want to be able to do something and make a difference with the platform that I have earned and hopefully will expand on in the future.”
Gu, who grew up in the United States, addressed her decision to represent China in the Olympics on her Instagram. “This was an incredibly tough decision for me to make. I am extremely thankful for the US Ski & Snowboard and the Chinese Ski Association for having the vision and belief in me to make my dreams come true. I am proud of my heritage, and equally proud of my American upbringings.”