Eileen Gu is one to watch! At the 2022 Beijing Olympics, the athlete, 18, recently won her first gold medal in freestyle skiing.
The Olympian was born in the United States and currently lives in San Francisco, Calif., but she is actually representing China at the Games.
Not only does she excel in sports, but she has a modeling contract with IMG, and she recently got accepted to Stanford with a near-perfect SAT score.
Gu became interested in skiing “because my mom really loved skiing,” she explained. “She took me up to the hill when I was three, which was the youngest age that I would be allowed to play in ski school. So I would be able to get my ski lessons, and then she would be able to get her laps in without me slowing her down. That was how I started skiing.”
“My mom has always encouraged me to pursue my own passion, and also to be able to have a lot of opportunities. Growing up, I did basketball, soccer. I was a cross-country and track runner. I did rock climbing, horseback riding, archery, skiing, ballet, piano, all these different hobbies. And so in the end, when I was able to choose the ones that I ended up pursuing, I still had that background to build off of,” she continued.
Of course, Gu is extremely busy, but she admitted that she tries to rest and recuperate whenever possible.
“I think that for me, especially as someone who competes in three events, it can be really tiring emotionally, going through those adrenaline peaks and crashes, even more so than physically. That’s while training, and that goes to a whole ‘nother level while competing,” she said. “For me, I think it was about redefining what rest looks like. Personally, it’s difficult to just lie down and do nothing, because in my head it feels like I’m being unproductive, and I could be doing something else. So instead of resting, I’m just laying there kind of having a panic attack. So instead of doing that, maybe, you know, running is a form of rest for me, like jogging slowly because that’s letting my mind rest. Or writing, journaling, reading.”
Ultimately, the brunette beauty is proud of her success thus far. “I’ve always said my goal is to globally spread the sport I love to kids, especially girls, and to shift sport culture toward one motivated by passion,” she said. “I’m blown away by how far we have come.”
