Alysa Liu completely redefined her career trajectory during her second stint as a competitive figure skater. The 21-year-old captured gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics after implementing a strict “my way or highway” approach to her training. She recently announced a shocking decision to skip the upcoming 2026/27 competitive season. A prominent former champion believes this sudden hiatus conceals a specific ulterior motive.

Natalia Bestemianova claims the impending return of Russian figure skaters directly influenced Liu’s decision to step away. Russian and Belarusian athletes recently competed at the 2026 Winter Olympics as Individual Neutral Athletes following a three-year international ban. The 1988 Olympic ice dance champion firmly believes the American superstar fears this renewed international competition.

“This is not news to me,” Bestemyanova said, according to FS Gossips. “I actually thought she would retire altogether. Why would she come back? She is an Olympic champion. She has achieved everything. She has multimillion-dollar endorsement contracts.

“All this talk about, ‘I’ll be back,’ is empty talk. I do not think she will return. But of course, the return of the Russians also played a role. The reality is that she would then have to bring back her quadruple jump and triple axel. That would be very difficult for her. She can do it, but she no longer needs to.”

While Russian national athletes were allowed to compete at the 2026 Winter Olympics, they did so as Individual Neutral Athletes (AIN). Thus, Liu competed against the likes of Adeliia Petrosian and Viktoriia Safonova, who put up a tough fight. Petrosian in particular finished fifth in both the short program and free-skate, ending up nine points behind Alysa Liu.

However, Natalia Bestemianova was pointing out that Liu hasn’t performed those jumps since 2021/22. That wasn’t the case during Liu’s first stint as a figure skater but a growth spurt in 2020 alongside a switch in coach changed things. It saw the now 21-year-old rework her program and attempt the triple axel with mixed success in 2021/22.

Following that, Alysa Liu retired, made her comeback, and has only performed those jumps in practice. However, the reigning Olympic champion has talked about working on the quadruple jump again, although she’s yet to perform it. The same goes for the triple axel, although Liu is likely working on it.

In her statement announcing her break, the 21-year-old revealed that she’s taking the time off to “recalibrate, fine-tune things”. That does point to her doing more training and improving her program in preparation for far greater competition.

Liu’s decision to step away has raised questions about what she plans to change before returning. However, the Olympic champion has previously spoken about taking a different approach to skating, with creativity playing a major role in how she wants to compete.

Alysa Liu expands on creativity through figure skating

The American superstar utilized her 2026 Winter Olympics program to heavily emphasize personal freedom and artistic expression. She actively rejected the strict boundaries that previously caged her during her initial professional stint. Her successful return transformed her into a massive global icon for the next generation of skaters. This unprecedented stardom stems directly from her unique artistic vision.

That wasn’t the case during her first stint as a figure skater but she was determined to change things her second time around. And her tweaks worked, as Liu didn’t just become the Olympic champion, she became a global superstar. Both on and off the ice, the 21-year-old turned into a figurehead for the new generation of figure skaters and more.

All of that, however, simply comes from Alysa Liu’s attempt to showcase her creativity. And for Liu, figure skating gives her the perfect platform to do so.

“I love emphasizing how I feel, and I do that through fashion, through choreography, and through what music I skate to,” Liu told UnWomen. “With skating, it feels like I can kind of do all of it in one. I can dance on the ice, and I can pick what I’m wearing. There are a ton of little outlets in figure skating, which is cool.”

Not just that, the 21-year-old has never been afraid to fail. That has more so applied to her second stint as a figure skater more than the first, with her now in love with the imperfection of life.

“I used to be a perfectionist when I was a kid, but now I love when things are imperfect. There’s something so beautiful and human about that,” Liu added.

“I’m all about experiencing life. It would be no fun if everything just worked out, if there were no bumps. I feel like I learn the most from the low points, so I can really enjoy the high points.”

Bestemyanova remains entirely convinced the Russian return triggered this competitive hiatus. The American superstar will utilize this upcoming break to carefully craft her highly anticipated athletic return.