It has been hard to miss the recent online buzz of 2026 Winter Olympic Champion Alysa Liu. But it isn’t only for her athletic talent that she has been receiving such attention.
The 20-year-old’s personal style, attitude towards her sport and, of course, her taste in music all contribute to her viral recognition. Noticeably, Alysa’s song for her Olympic program has put Donna Summers back on the charts, nearly 50 years after its release, with X reporting it to be on the top 10 on US iTunes. Summers released her disco version of MacArthur’s Park back in 1978, topping the Billboard hot 100 that year.
Last year Alysa also skated at the World Championships to the song ‘Promise’ by Icelandic jazz-pop artist, Laufey. Winning first place, this was only the beginning to Alysa’s stardom.
They both met back in September 2025 at one of Laufey’s concerts. Wearing her dress and gold medal from her ‘Promise’ program, Laufey crowned Alysa ‘San Francisco’s best dress guest.’
This February, Laufey gave Alysa a shout-out after winning Olympic Gold, at her concert in Zurich. Before playing her next song, she took a break to say: “She has been skating to this song of mine and just brought it such a new life… It’s just so cool when art comes together like that.”
Just when we thought we couldn’t get enough of the popstar on ice, Alysa treated the world to yet another performance.
Most recently the 2026 Olympic Gold Medallists skated at the Olympic Exhibition Gala to ‘Stateside’ remix by PinkPantheress with Zara Larsson. This gained widespread attention online and did not bypass Zara, who posted her reaction to it on TikTok. After only a day the TikTok post had 12.5 million views. The reaction itself was more than positive, with Zara saying, “You know it’s good when even the commentators are quiet.”
Alysa Liu has unsurprisingly been an intercontinental hit online and the world waits as we look forward to what else she might have in store.
Featured Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons – FloweringDagwood
