Eileen Gu in tears after triumph: "My grandmother is gone"

Eileen Gu closed the Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina with a great haul: she won two silver medals (big air and slopestyle) and one gold medal (halfpipe). Expectations on the Chinese athlete were very high and, like the great champion she is, she did not disappoint them. After her triumph in the halfpipe race, Eileen Gu burst into tears and showed up at the press conference a few minutes late.

“You have to excuse me but I just found out that my grandmother passed away – said the champion with tears in her eyes -She played a very important role in my life and I always admired her, she inspired me. The last time I saw her before coming to the Olympics she was sick, so I knew she was a possibility. I did not promise her that I would win but I promised her that I would be brave, just like her. And that’s why I keep referring to this theme of betting on myself, being brave and taking risks. It’s actually something that goes back to the promise I made to my grandmother. I am really happy that I was able to keep it and I hope I made her proud, but now is a difficult time for me”.

Following the news, Eileen Gu was overwhelmed by the affection of her fans: on social networks thousands decided to send her messages of support at this very complicated time for her and her family. Other athletes who participated in the Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina also decided to express their closeness to the Chinese star.

Just before the start of the Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina, Eileen Gu wrote a long letter that she later shared on her social channels, “In my heart, the mission is always the same: to introduce freeskiing to younger people, especially girls, to make women’s skiing even more popular, and to do my best to represent it on such an important stage as Milan Cortina. In the last few years I had some problems with injuries, now I feel renewed and found energy I didn’t even know I had. I am very proud of myself and I hope you can be too.”