At just 19 years old, Eileen Gu is already a two-time Olympic gold medalist, a MET gala attendee, ESPY Award winner, and is currently enrolled at Stanford University.
Competing professionally for China since 2019, Gu was raised in San Fransisco, California, to a Chinese first-generation immigrant mother Yan Gu, who moved to the USA in her twenties. After pursuing a degree in California herself, she enrolled Eileen in ski lessons at Lake Tahoe, and, according to Gu, “accidentally created a pro skier.”
In 2021, Gu sprung onto the scene, with a bronze and two golds at the Winter X Games, becoming the first rookie to earn gold in the Women’s Ski SuperPipe, the first rookie to medal in three events, and the first athlete representing China to win a gold medal.
Following this, she took the 2022 Winter Olympics by storm, becoming the youngest gold medalist in freestyle skiing, winning the first Big Air event to be held at an Olympics. She also went on to earn bronze in the slopestyle event, and a further gold in the women’s freeski halfpipe.
Gu ended the 2021-22 FIS Freestyle World Cup season with 5 first place finishes, 4 of which were in halfpipe events, giving her a perfect halfpipe record on the season, and winning her first crystal globe becoming the first freestyle skier to win four consecutive World Cup competitions.
Outside of skiing, Gu enrolled at Stanford University in Fall of 2022, studying quantum physics. She is also represented by IMG models and fronts over 20 brands in China, across sports and fashion.
Comments