Alysa Liu: The Michael Jordan Of Figure Skating
By Romen Basu Borsellino | 25 Apr, 2025

After a two-year hiatus, nineteen year-old Alysa Liu has returned to ice skating more dominant than ever, following in the footsteps of another famous athlete.

Despite being a five-foot-two nineteen year-old Asian woman, figure skater Alysa Liu has a lot in common with Michael Jordan. Jordan famously established himself as one of the greatest athletes to ever compete at his sport, only to walk away from it all and then unexpectedly come back less than two years later, more dominant than ever.

Which is exactly what Alysa Liu did.

In 1993, on the heels of back to back to back NBA Championships, Jordan shocked the world by announcing his return to basketball through a fax that contained just two words: I’m back. Given the strong likelihood that nineteen year-old Alysa Liu has never heard of a fax machine, her April 2024 declaration “back on the ice” was delivered via Instagram.

During her brief time away from the sport, Liu didn’t do anything as mind-boggling as Jordan’s foray into professional baseball. Rather, she just wanted to be a normal person for the first time in her life. A current student at UCLA, she’s gotten to do things like take family vacations, go skiing for the first time, and even summit Mt. Everest. But while Jordan now has only his memories (as well as billions of dollars, six championship rings, and an unshakeable reputation for crying), Liu remains in her prime.

Last month, at the 2025 World Figure Skating Championship in Boston, Liu defeated three-time defending champion Kaori Sakamoto of Japan to become the US’s first world champion since 2006. And just this past week at the 2025 World Team Trophy in Tokyo, Japan, Liu brought home two more gold medals and a championship for team USA. These recent victories join a long list of Liu’s achievements, many from before her hiatus, including being the youngest skater ever to win a women’s national title at only age thirteen.

Liu’s decision to step back appeared to coincide with a broader trend of athletes, particularly women of color, prioritizing self-care. In 2017 gymnast Simone Biles received both praise and (unmerited) ridicule for taking a break, only to continue her World Championship and Olympic gold medal dominance upon returning. In 2021, tennis superstar Naomi Osaka took her first of two eventual hiatuses, citing the feeling that victory was no longer bringing her happiness.

Born to a Chinese father, Liu is also just one of a number of Asian Americans who are associated with figure skating. The list includes household names like Kristi Yamaguchi, Michelle Kwan, and Nathan Chen. According to Cal State Fullerton sociology professor Christina Chin, one reason for Asian Americans’ dominance at the sport may have to do with their relative economic success. The AAPI community enjoys an above-average median household income. This allows for hiring the top coaches, renting out skate rinks, traveling, and other countless costs associated with the sport.

Should she choose to continue on with the sport, Alysa Liu is likely to have a long and successful career ahead of her, with the potential to be remembered as a figure skating legend.