Controversial skier Eileen Gu settles for silver after defending gold medal bid falls short in Milan

Eileen Gu, the arguable large aerial skiing prima who competes for China contempt being American-born, was incapable to support her golden medal connected Monday nighttime astatine the 2026 Milan Cortina Games.

Gu came distant with the metallic medal successful the women’s freeski large aerial competition, portion Canada’s Megan Oldham won gold.

Gu notched a 90.00 connected her archetypal run, which was tied connected the database of competitors for 3rd place, arsenic Oldham and Austria’s Lara Wolf had amended scores.

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Gold medalist Megan Oldham of Team Canada, Silver medalist Ailing Eileen Gu of Team People’s Republic of China and Bronze medalist Flora Tabanelli of Team Italy airs for a photograph during the medal ceremonial for the Women's Freeski Big Air connected time 10 of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games astatine Livigno Snow Park connected Feb. 16, 2026 successful Livigno, Italy. (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

But Gu’s mistake was connected the 2nd run, wherever she wasn’t capable to drawback the process of her skis cleanly and her landing was shaky, starring to a 61.25 score.

At that point, Gu was retired of a medal spot with 1 tally remaining. In this competition, the apical 2 scores are combined for each skier.

On the last run, Gu managed to people an 89.00, which gave her a 179.00 last tally. That was capable for 2nd place, but Oldham had a slight, 1.75-point vantage implicit Gu successful the end.

CONTROVERSIAL OLYMPIAN EILEEN GU UPSET OVER ‘REALLY UNFAIR’ WINTER GAMES SCHEDULE

Italy's Flora Tabanelli finished with bronze successful the event.

Gu wasn’t upset astatine the result, though, pointing retired that she’s won 5 Olympic medals successful her 2 appearances astatine the Games. Her archetypal was successful Beijing successful 2022, wherever she took location golden successful large aerial and halfpipe, portion winning metallic successful Slopestyle.

In this year’s Games, Gu secured a metallic medal successful Slopestyle, with halfpipe the remaining lawsuit for her aboriginal this week.

"‘Five-time Olympic medalist’ benignant of has a bully ringing to it," Gu told reporters aft the event.

Before this medal event, Gu called retired the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) implicit however choky the Olympic docket has been for her, saying it prevents her from getting due grooming sessions she needs for a freeski event.

Gold medalist Megan Oldham of Team Canada, Silver medalist Ailing Eileen Gu of Team People’s Republic of China and Bronze medalist Flora Tabanelli of Team Italy airs for a triumph selfie during the medal ceremonial for the Women's Freeski Big Air connected time 10 of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games astatine Livigno Snow Park connected Feb. 16, 2026 successful Livigno, Italy. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

Gu is the sport’s lone three-event athlete, and she says competing connected Monday nighttime makes it intolerable for her to decently hole for the qualifying circular of the halfpipe final, which begins connected Thursday.

"I’m disappointed successful FIS," she said. "I deliberation the Olympics should epitomize aspiration, and I deliberation being capable to bash thing that’s beyond the mean should beryllium celebrated alternatively of punished.

"I deliberation it’s truly unfair. I deliberation it’s punishing excellence, to beryllium wholly honorable with you. Because I situation to bash 3 events, and this is making it wholly intolerable to bid reasonably for the 3rd event."

Gu became a arguable fig successful enactment sports successful 2019 erstwhile she made the determination to skis for China alternatively of the United States successful the upcoming 2022 Olympics. She grew up successful California and went to Stanford, though her parent is simply a first-generation Chinese migrant successful the U.S.

Gu said astatine the clip that it was an "incredibly tough" decision, and Americans weren’t excessively fond of her determination fixed the geopolitical hostility betwixt the U.S. and China.

Silver medalist Ailing Eileen Gu of Team People's Republic of China looks connected during the medal ceremonial for the Women's Freeski Big Air connected time 10 of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic games astatine Livigno Snow Park connected Feb. 16, 2026 successful Livigno, Italy. (Hannah Peters/Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Gu was celebrated successful China for her choice, but a elephantine question inactive looms arsenic she continues to beryllium 1 of the champion successful the sport.

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With China not allowing dual citizenship for its athletes, requiring Chinese nationality for those competing, has Gu renounced her American citizenship? She has not answered the question.

As Gu looks up to the halfpipe qualifiers connected Thursday, the last for the lawsuit is this Saturday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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