Alysa Liu Hair: Olympic Gold Medalist Opens Up About Famed Look
Alysa Liu made history on Thursday, February 19, and walked away from the individual women's skating competition with a gold medal.
It's a huge accomplishment for any athlete to get a gold, and now, Liu has won two at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Her first was with the Team USA women's team, and now, she has one on her own.
While Liu's performance and athleticism is getting a lot of attention, so is her hairdo. Liu has a unique hairstyle that alternates horizontal pieces of brunette and blonde in her hair.
Alysa Liu's Hair is Inspired By a Tree
Speaking with Paralympian Haven Shepherd in a TikTok video, she said, "I just want to be a tree." Each ring on her hair, she explained, is like on a tree trunk and marks the passage of time in her life.
"I originally actually wanted raccoon stripes three years ago, but I was like, 'Too much, too long and it’s going to be hard to upkeep,'" Liu told reporters before the Olympics, according to USA Today. "Then I thought, I kind of want to be a tree, add a new ring every year, and so I did my second one the next year. It just grows out, and then so this year, I just did the same thing. I'm just gonna keep adding one every time."
More on the Story Behind Olympic Gold Medalist Alysa Liu's Look
Ahead of her appearance in the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Liu worked with hairstylist Kelsey Miller.
"I specialize in dimensional hair color, red heads, and extensions, so this was definitely a very unique situation for me," Miller told Allure in an interview on February 6. "We get so set in our ways and it was fun to shake it up and do something I don't typically do.” She helped the blonde stand out more."
Miller added, "Your hair is truly your identity. It can help you with your confidence... I love to see that this is brought into the sports world because I feel like [the confidence that comes from it] only makes her a better athlete."
Also on Thursday, Japan's veteran, Kaori Sakamoto, won silver in her final Olympic event. Her 17-year-old teammate, Ami Nakai, took bronze after being No. 1 in the field in the short program.