Article by Oana Duşmănescu – Published Tuesday, March 10, 2026, 2:25 p.m. / Updated Tuesday, March 10, 2026, 2:26 p.m.
Olympic figure skating champion Alysa Liu decided to make her political beliefs clear in a recent interview with Rolling Stone. The 20-year-old athlete has spoken openly about her political orientation and the influence her Chinese-born father had in shaping it.
Raised in Richmond, California, by only her father, Arthur Liu, Alysa came into the world with the help of a surrogate mother, just like her four other siblings. She started skating at the age of 5, and her father, seeing how talented she was, tailored his entire existence to the sport his daughter practiced.
“Our family is pretty liberal, and I'd say that's because of my dad,” Alysa said, referring to herself and her four siblings. “We're proud of his story. We're vocal too. As he was, I would say. He was extremely vocal. On a whole other level.”
The skater's father, Arthur Liu, a former political refugee from China, arrived clandestinely in the United States at the age of 20. He was a vehement critic of the communist government after the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989. Arthur has always spoken openly about the reasons why his family is very far from a traditional one. “I am a single parent to my children because I wanted to. I always wanted to have children, but I was already 40 years old,” he said.
Alysa Liu in action PHOTO: Guliver / GettyImages
“My dad is so involved in politics, which makes my whole family the same. The idea of fighting for what's right and making your voice heard is important. We support basic human rights, things like that. Sometimes we call political leaders, we write letters to them. I remember doing that a lot when we were kids.”
When asked about the causes she is most passionate about, Alysa noted: “A lot of climate issues. But mostly election issues, Black Lives Matter, Stop Asian Hate, protests against ICE. Lots of things like that.”
