Chinese Winter Olympian Eileen Gu, who was born in the United States, has been speaking out against the blowback American athletes have been receiving for commenting on the state of the country.
"I’m sorry that the headline that is eclipsing the Olympics has to be something so unrelated to the spirit of the Games. It really runs contrary to everything the Olympics should be," Gu told reporters Monday.
"The whole point of sport is to bring people together. … One of the very few common languages, that of the human body, that of the human spirit, the competitive spirit, the capacity to break not only records, but especially in our sport, literally the human limit. How wonderful is that?"
Gu, who won a silver medal in the freeski slopestyle final, took silver with an 86.58 score. Switzerland’s Mathilde Gremaud won Monday's final event with a score of 86.96.
“Sometimes it feels like I'm carrying the weight of two countries on my shoulders,” Gu said, adding, “Just being able to ski through all of that, you know. To still show my best and still be so deeply in love with the sport,” according to the AFP news.
© Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images.
Gu, who chose to represent China over the United States, is one of the most famous athletes at the Winter Olympics.
The Chinese Olympian has earned a fortune, too.
Gu's earnings in 2025 are very high
Gu has reportedly made close to $23 million over the past year. She ranks No. 1 on the list of highest-paid Winter Olympians.
However, only $100,000 of that comes from her sport. The rest are from endorsements.
"The all-time leader in freeskiing World Cup wins will defend her big air and halfpipe titles at the Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina this month. But despite the medals and victories, the 2026 Olympic torchbearer earned $0.1 million from skiing last year — $23 million came from her lucrative off-field endorsements, dwarfing every other athlete bar Gauff," the New York Times wrote.
"Gu is an IMG model and has walked down the runway for brands such as Victoria’s Secret and Louis Vuitton. That the majority of her earnings come from off-field endorsements is not surprising, as it is normal across most women’s sports as exposure has increased at a faster rate than salaries."
It's an impressive total, that's for sure.
The Winter Olympics continue on NBC.