Eileen Gu Hit Hard By Personal Setback After Winning Olympic Gold

Eileen Gu cried Sunday after winning gold in the freeski halfpipe in her second straight Winter Olympics ― but they weren’t tears of joy.

The U.S.-born star, who competed for China again, tearfully told the press that she just learned her grandmother, Guozhen Feng, had died.

“She was a really big part of my growing up and someone I looked up to immensely,” she said in a clip of the interview. “This woman commanded life, and she grabbed it by the reins, and she made it into what she wanted it to be.”

“She inspired me so much,” Gu added. “The last time I saw her before I came to the Olympics, she was very sick, so I knew that this was a possibility. I didn’t promise her that I was gonna win, but I did promise her that I was gonna be brave like she has been brave.”

“It’s also a really difficult time for me now.”

Gu, 22, posted a photo gallery of her grandma on Instagram, writing, “Because I promised her I would be brave like her.”

By any count ― a gold and two silvers in Italy to go with two golds and a silver at Beijing 2022 ― Gu’s Games have been a success. She excelled again while being attacked for competing under the flag of her mother’s native country.

Gu is one of many American athletes who chose another country to compete for, but some suggest her heritage attracted more hate.

On Sunday, the most-decorated freestyle skier echoed her intent to broaden the sport’s appeal and inspire youth in China.

“There are girls in China whose lives are going to be touched by the beautiful and wonderful power of sport,” Gu said. “That, in and of itself, is absolutely measured impact that I think I had always wanted.”