Grief After Gold For Olympic Ski Star Eileen Gu: Report

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Eileen Gu, the Chinese-American skier who won gold just days ago faced a loss that no amount of training could change.

Just after defending her Olympic halfpipe title at Milano Cortina 2026, Gu learned that her grandmother and role model had passed away.

The San Francisco-born, People’s Republic of China star was composed as she answered questions at the Livigno Snow Park press conference, but became emotional as she revealed afterwards that her grandmother, Feng Guozhen, had died, according to the the Olympic press reported..

The last time she saw her grandmother, before leaving for the Games, Feng was ill, and Gu knew the end might be near, the Olympic press reported.

“She was a really big part of my life growing up, and someone I looked up to immensely. She was a fighter. And I think what's so interesting is that a lot of people cruise through life, but she was a steamship," Gu said. "This woman commanded life, and she grabbed it by the reins, and she made it into what she wanted it to be. And she inspired me so much," Gu said.

Gu was raised in San Francisco by her Chinese mother, Yan Gu. It was her mother who introduced her to skiing at age three near Lake Tahoe, according to reports.

At 18, Gu captured her first Olympic medals at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, becoming the youngest Olympic champion in freestyle skiing and the first athlete in the sport to win three medals at a single Games (two gold, one silver). Four years later, at age 22, she added another gold in the halfpipe and silver medals in big air and slopestyle at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

With her sixth Olympic medal, Gu cemented her place as the most decorated free skier in history — a milestone made more poignant by the loss of the role model who inspired and shaped her. Gu’s middle name, Feng, is a tribute to her grandmother, the Olympic press reported.

While Gu — like all elite athletes who aspire to Olympic gold — had to overcome obstacles, physical and emotional, she has said her biggest hurdle was getting her grandmother to accept the idea of her being a professional skier.

Before the Milan Cortina Games, Gu said she didn't promise her grandmother that she would win, Gu told reporters, “but I did promise her that I was going to be brave like she has been brave”.

Gu said that's why she drilled down in public statements about betting on herself, being brave, and taking risks. “It actually goes back to that promise I made my grandma," she said. "I'm really happy that I was able to uphold that and hopefully do her proud," but, she added, "it's also a really difficult time for me now," she told reporters.

Now, the 18-year-old athlete has said she wants to inspire girls in China and encourage more female role models in sports.