Eileen Gu, the Winter Olympian who controversial chose to represent China over the USA, has sparked backlash from American fans yet again after she had to settle for silver after falling in the women’s free ski slopestyle on Monday.
Gu, 22, who represented Team USA until the age of 15 when she switched allegiances to China, was expected to duel Switzerland’s Mathilde Gremaud for gold at the Milan-Cortina games.
However, the California-born athlete failed to top the Olympic podium for a second straight games after she fell on her third and final run – all but handing the gold medal to Gremaud.
At first, the showdown between Gu and Gremaud, the reigning Olympic champion, on the slopes of Livigno lived up to its hype with the pair going tip to tip through the first two runs but it ultimately ended in the same fashion as four years ago in Beijing.
On the third run, Gu immediately fell off the first rail – the same element that troubled her in qualifying two days – denying her the gold.
Gu’s unfortunate tumble was ruthlessly mocked by furious American fans, who continued to hit out at her for turning her back on the USA and competing under the Chinese flag.
Winter Olympics poster girl Eileen Gu failed to claim gold for China in the free ski slopestyle
Despite growing up in San Francisco, Gu chose to represent China from the age of 15
The 22-year-old fell off the first rails of her third run denying her the gold medal on Monday
‘Eileen Gu chose Communist China over the country she was born, raised, and trained. Why the hell is she being highlighted? She is a traitor,’ one viewer fumed, over NBC’s coverage of the games.
‘Hard to watch Eileen Gu compete for China after everything the U.S. did for her training. High treason,’ a second posted on X.
‘I’ve never seen NBC cover a Chinese athlete more. If she doesn’t want to represent the Stars and Stripes than don’t cover her. Period. We don’t care if she’s pretty and actually American. She’s not on our team,’ added a third.
One social media user claimed that Gu’s fall was ‘karma for representing the wrong country of birth.’
Growing up in San Francisco, learning to ski in Lake Tahoe, and being immersed in American culture, Gu – the daughter of an American father and a Chinese mother – represented Team USA until the age of 15 when she switched to the country of her mother’s birth. She’s fluent in both Mandarin and English.
Gu first came under fire in 2022 when her decision to compete under the Five-star Red Flag instead of the Star-Spangled Banner came to light ahead of the Olympics in Beijing.
Her allegiance came under heavy criticism from American fans, who claimed her decision was solely motivated by sponsorship money from China.
However, Gu strongly denied that the opportunity to earn more money – through representing Chinese companies – did not play a role in her decision.
‘I’m glad that there’s enough money in the sport now for people to think that’s a consideration,’ the Olympic champion told TIME Magazine last month.
More to follow.
