Sports
American-born ski star competing for China criticized by peers as “opportunistic”
Eileen Gu, born to an American father and Chinese mother, shot to stardom after winning a World Cup for the U.S. as a 16-year-old-rookie in 2019, only to announce later than year she would be representing China in the 2022 Olympics.
February 8, 2022 9:46pm
Updated: February 9, 2022 6:04pm
The decision by a San Francisco-born ski star compete for China in the 2022 Olympics has drawn skepticism from some of her peers, given Beijing’s ongoing controversies over the genocide of Uyghurs and women’s safety over the disappearance of tennis player Peng Shuai.
Eileen Gu, born to an American father and Chinese mother, shot to stardom after winning a World Cup for the U.S. as a 16-year-old-rookie in 2019, only to announce later than year she would be representing China in the 2022 Olympics.
“I have decided to compete for China in the 2022 Winter Olympics,” Gu wrote to her followers on Instagram. “The opportunity to help inspire millions of young people where my mum was born, during the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help promote the sport I love.”
However, Gu has avoided questions on mounting human rights abuse allegations against her adopted homeland, declining to comment as recently as January in Time. Her decision and silence has reportedly drawn criticism from her peers and fans in women’s free skiing.
“It is not my place to judge, but Eileen is from California, not from China, and her decision seems opportunistic,” Jen Hudak, a former Winter X Games gold medalist for the USA women’s team, told the New York Post.
Hudak said she could not speak to what Gu’s Chinese heritage meant to her, but “she became the athlete she is because she grew up in the United States, where she had access to premier training grounds and coaching that, as a female, she might not have had in China.”
“This makes me sad. It would be nice to see the medals going to America,” added Hudak.
Other female skiers have made the same point, but also acknowledged the economic incentives available to the rising part-Chinese star in the world’s fastest-growing economy.
Freeski pioneer Kristi Leskinen told ESPN, “On one hand, she almost certainly wouldn’t be the athlete she is today without being born, raised and trained in America. But it’s equally difficult to imagine she’d have anywhere near the recognition, sponsorship deals or resources if she hadn’t chosen to represent China. So, while she often cites inspiration as her motivation, for some it’s hard not to see opportunism in it. Especially at a time when the WTA is suspending its events in China out of fear for a female athlete’s safety.”
Gu has been signed over 20 endorsement deals in her adopted homeland, where she has been dubbed “the perfect child next door” and “Snow Princess,” each of which reportedly costs about $2.5 million. Her official Weibo account has over 1.3 million followers, compared to around 250,000 on Instagram, which is blocked in China.
Despite this, Gu’s true nationality has been called into question. China does not allow dual-citizenship, but Chinese netizens have speculated the American-born skier may not have relinquished her U.S. passport.
