Chinese American skier Eileen Gu, the most decorated freestyle skier in Winter Olympic history, ended her Olympic journey on a high note Sunday by capturing gold while representing China in the women’s halfpipe final. The victory brought her career total to six Olympic medals at just 22 years old.
Following her final competition, an emotional Gu announced the death of her grandmother, Guozhen Feng, turning a historic moment into a bittersweet one.
“She was a steamship,” Gu said through tears after the Games. “This woman commanded life, took it by the reins, and turned it into whatever she wanted it to be.”
Gu later posted a photo on Instagram of herself alongside her grandmother in a hospital bed, writing in the caption, “Because I promised her I would be brave like her.”
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Gu quickly received an outpouring of support, including from fellow Olympic gold medalist Lindsey Vonn of the United States, who watched much of these Games from a hospital bed after sustaining a complex tibia fracture in her opening event.
“Grandmas are so special. I’m so sorry,” Vonn commented on Gu’s Instagram post.
Vonn, 41, is likely finished competing in the Olympic Games following the injury, which has required more than five surgeries in the two weeks since it occurred.
Still, she has cemented her legacy as one of the most accomplished American alpine ski racers in Olympic history, while Gu has already established herself as a legend in her own right.
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