Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images/Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Former NFL quarterback and current New York City radio host Boomer Esiason became the latest sports media talking head to lend his voice to the discourse surrounding Eileen Gu, the gold medal winning American-born skier who competed for China in the 2026 Winter Olmypics. Gu won three medals, two silvers and a gold, while representing China in Milan.
Given the fact that she was born and raised in the United States but decided to compete for China in the Olympics, 22-year-old freestyle skier Eileen Gu became one of the most talked-about athletes at the Milano-Cortina games, with the ever-online Vice President JD Vance even contributing to the conversation (Gu later responded to Vance, as well).
Speaking on his radio show following the conclusion of the Olympic games over the weekend — which saw Guy win a Gold in Halfpipe, Silver in Slopestyle, Silver in Big Air — Boomer Esiason detailed his feelings about Gu, which essentially boiled down to three key traits: she’s hot, she’s smart, and she’s insufferable.
Former NFL quarterback and radio host Boomer Esiason boiled Eileen Gu down to three simple traits: hot, smart, and insufferable
“Her mother is Chinese, and her grandmother had just come here, and apparently there was some loophole that allowed her to compete for China. The Chinese government paid her a lot of money. It’s kind of funny that a communist country would pay a woman to serve as propaganda in what’s supposed to be a capitalist framework. I heard she received $6 million for going there, and over the last year she supposedly made $23 million in sponsorships from various Chinese companies,” the former Bengals and Jets quarterback said.
“It’s not just about the money, though. She’s very attractive and extremely bright — she went to Stanford — but if you listen to her post-competition interviews, she can be insufferable. It’s hard to listen to. Then again, it’s an individual sport, and she talks about herself rather than about teammates or the support system around her. I mean, she won yesterday — you can’t argue with that — but still,” he continued.
“And that question a reporter asked her was interesting. The reporter said, respectfully, how much do you think before you speak? She pointed out how eloquent her answers are on everything, whether it’s the geopolitical climate or something that happened on the slopes — she always seems to have the perfect answer. Of course, no one asked her directly about the Chinese government. I will say she’s exceptionally bright and clearly knows exactly how she’s going to answer things. But no one has really pressed her with a tough question, and that last answer she gave just came off as insufferable.”
“She’s a very attractive woman and she’s extremely bright, she went to Stanford. But if you listen to her post participation interviews, she’s insufferable” – Boomer Esiason on Eileen Gu pic.twitter.com/wLZELJx383
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 24, 2026
This isn’t the first time that Boomer (literally — a boomer named Boomer) has provided commentary on the rights and life choices of Olympic athletes, as he previously told Olympians to essentially “shut up and dribble” earlier in the 2026 Winter Games.
“Everybody should just pipe down and just do their sport and play for our country and respect the flag and respect everything that’s going on.” – Boomer Esiason on the Olympics pic.twitter.com/LCbbnhCtd9
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 10, 2026
Choosing to represent China over the United States — especially when undisclosed sums of money are involved — is undoubtedly a divisive decision by Gu. The practice of an athlete representing a country other than the one they were literally born and raised in, however, is not unheard of in international sports as it is actually quite common place in global soccer. That is not a defense of Gu’s decision, but rather an acknowledgment that she’s not the only athlete in history to make such a choice.