Alysa Liu won the first gold medal for the United States in figure skating at the Olympics since 2002 with her incredible performance in Italy. She couldn’t have done it without her dad.
She also couldn’t have done it with her dad!
Liu was the product of a highly-intentional upbringing. In the end, she carved her own path the Olympics and made history.
Alysa Liu fired her own father.
Arthur Liu was a lot more than a typical “figure skating parent.” He was the architect of Alysa Liu.
Raised in Richmond, California by a single father who deliberately built his family through surrogacy, Alysa was introduced to figure skating at five years old. Arthur noticed her potential in the sport as soon as she got on the ice and very quickly committed her to the craft full-time. He arranged all of her ice time, travel and coaching while she was still in elementary school. It became a passion project, if you will.
As Alysa started to excel, her father effectively took over as her manager and decision-maker. Arthur handled all of the sponsorships, media requests, and anything that didn’t have to do with skating so his daughter could focus only on her craft. She never had to think about the business side of sports.
Alysa faced a lot of pressure as the next American prodigy who was expected to carry the future of women’s figure skating in the United States. He wanted to take as much of that pressure off of her.
Although that relationship led to a lot of success, and always remained respectful, it later became controversial— for lack of a better word. Arthur was intense. Observers within the skating community wondered if he was too involved. Most notably, he would often make high-profile coaching changes right in the middle of an Olympic cycle and moved his daughter between multiple training bases.
Coaching changes are not uncommon. The frequency for which Alysa Liu changed coaches was not.
That led to a split in 2022.
Alysa dismissed her own father as her manager shortly after winning a bronze medal at the World Championships, just a few months before her well-documented hiatus from the sport. It signaled a shift toward independence. It was not a family rupture. She wanted to manage her own path.
Arthur Liu wanted the best for his daughter.
Now four years later, Alysa Liu is an Olympic champion. The 20-year-old stood atop the podium as the first American woman to win gold in figure skating in more than two decades.
It marked the culmination of an incredible comeback that nobody thought was possible. Alysa stepped away from the ice for more than two years to find herself. And now she is golden!
There is no denying that Arthur Liu deserves a lot of credit for his daughter’s success. He estimates that he spent somewhere between $500,000 and $1 million to help her become the figure skater that she is. He knew it would pay off. It did.
There were some ripples along the journey, including when Alysa dismissed Arthur as her manager, but he does not see his involvement the same way as others. One particular excerpt from his interview with 60 Minutes provides great perspective on the relationship between father and daughter.
Some coaches tried to keep Arthur away from the rink. But one afternoon, he just couldn’t help himself.
Arthur Liu: Just one time, I sneaked into the ice rink.
Sharyn Alfonsi: Why?
Arthur Liu: Big jacket, sunglasses, head covered. Entered the ice rink from the back. Not from the front. So I was sitting there – up in the bleachers – watching. And I didn’t like what I saw. Standing around for 20 minutes. Skated around the rink a few times. That’s where my money was going?
Sharyn Alfonsi: And how did that go down?
Arthur Liu: We stopped working with that coach.
Sharyn Alfonsi: These stories…
Arthur Liu: Yes.
Sharyn Alfonsi: …make it sound like you were like this tiger dad who was all over her career and pushing her. Is that fair?
Arthur Liu: Not quite. Not quite. I was…laissez-faire. Yes.
Sharyn Alfonsi: A laissez-faire dad doesn’t bring a radar gun to the skating rink.
Arthur Liu: Well, I mean, you know, the radar gun is to measure her speed.
— 60 Minutes / CBS News
Say what you will about Arthur Liu but Alysa Liu has nothing but great things to say about her dad. He did what he thought was best for his daughter. They worked through challenges. She won a gold medal.