These Winter Olympians Offered Eileen Gu Words of Comfort Following Personal Tragedy

Numerous athletes sent their support to the history-making freestyle skier following her recent loss.

Eileen Gu / Patrick Smith/Getty Images

On Sunday, Feb 22, in the midst of her record-breaking Olympic appearance, freestyle skier Eileen Gu gave reporters a somber update. Following questions from various outlets, the athlete—who has notched two silver medals, one in Big Air and another in Slopestyle, and a defending gold in the Halfpipe at the Milan Cortina Games—disclosed that her grandma passed away during her time in the competition.

“The reason I was late is that I just found out that my grandma passed away, and she was, like, a really big part of my life growing up. And someone I looked up to immensely,” Gu elaborated. “She was such a strong [person] ... she was a fighter, and I think what’s so interesting is that a lot of people just cruise through life, but she was a steamship. Like, this woman commanded life, and she grabbed it by the reins, and she made it into what she wanted it to be and she inspired me so much.”

The athlete continued, “The last time I saw her before I came to the Olympics, she was very sick, so I knew that this was a possibility. I didn’t promise her that I was gonna win, but I did promise her that I was going to be brave, like she has been brave. And that’s why I keep referring to this theme of, like, betting on myself and, like, being brave and taking risks. It actually goes back to that promise that I made my grandma. And so I’m really happy that I was able to uphold that and hopefully do her proud, but it’s also really difficult time for me now.”

Gu also took to Instagram to share an honorary post for her grandma. In a brief note underneath the photo tribute, the San Francisco native reiterated the former message, writing in part, “Because I promised her I would be brave like her.”

View this post on Instagram

Fellow winter athletes headed to the comment section on Gu’s six-slide carousel to share their condolences, including Olympic medal-winning Alpine skiier Lindsey Vonn. The athlete, who is currently recovering from a complex tibia fracture following her crash on Feb. 8, penned a sweet note: “Grandmas are so special. I’m so sorry. 🤍🙏🏻.”

“Angel in the sky 💫,” wrote Olympic freestyle skier Thibault Magnin.

Darian Stevens, another freestyle skier, added, “So sorry. She seemed like such a legend, sending my love 💜” .

Five-time Olympic snowboarder Liu Jiayu also chimed in with a singular red heart.

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