Alysa Liu wins gold, drops F-bomb after epic Olympic comeback

Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto won the silver and Ami Nakai won bronze.

Liu becomes the first U.S. woman to medal in the event since 2006. She’s the first to win gold since 2002.

Liu was all smiles during her routine.

She shimmered in gold through her long program, putting a stamp on her incredible comeback. The Olympian came back to the sport after retiring at just 16 years old.

Former Olympians Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir are consistently amazed with joy she skates with and the way she talks about her mental health.

On her way to the medal ceremony, Liu said she could barely process what had just happened.

“I just, like, can’t process this,” she said. “There’s no way. I really liked my skate a lot.”

Isabeau Levito discusses her Olympic experience after she finished her competition in the women’s free skate.

Liu’s fellow “Blade Angels” did not medal in this event.

After a tough mistake in her short program that knocked her into 13th place, Amber Glenn came back with a nearly flawless free skate to put her back at the top of the pack for much of Thursday. She finished the event in 5th.

Glenn said she was “pretty satisfied” with herself after Thursday’s skate was “so proud” of Liu’s victory and the message it sends about prioritizing your mental health in sports.

Isabeau Levito, the third American in the event, finished in 12th. She had a few wobbles in her free skate, but leaves Italy with a strong Olympic debut.

Olympic figure skater Mariah Bell breaks down the performances of U.S. figure skaters Alysa Liu, Amber Glenn and Isabeau Levito.