Oakland's own Alysa Liu captures Olympic gold for Women's figure skating
Oaklands own Alysa Liu wins Olympic Gold, local fans cheer
Oakland Ice Center cheers and celebrates as its own Alysa Liu wins Olympic gold, the first American woman to do so in womens figure skating in 24 years.
OAKLAND, Calif. - Oakland's own Alysa Liu has captured the gold medal in women's singles figure skating at the Olympics. It's the first individual gold in women's figure skating for a member of Team USA since 2002.
Oakland's own Gold medal Olympian
It's an Olympic journey that is making her hometown proud.
At a watch party at the Oakland Ice Center on Thursday, they're savoring 20-year-old Liu's victory, and they couldn't have been prouder. Fans and friends say she often trains at the Oakland facility. They describe her as being approachable and great with children.
They say she won their hearts long before she won gold at the Olympics.
"When people started realizing Alysa Liu was in the building, they would start coming over here and watching," said Glenn Martin, general manager of the Oakland Ice Center.
He says this is where she learned to skate when she was 5-years-old. It's also where she trained, including in the weeks leading up to the Olympic Games in Italy.
Inspirational figure skater
At the watch party, as Liu skated to Olympic gold in figure skating, becoming the first U.S. woman to reach this pinnacle in 24 years, the enthusiasm was high.
"It's really amazing, really inspirational that she took two years off and now she's back and made it to the top," said Hannah Kupiloff, who skates at the center. She is a student at UC Berkeley. While her own injuries have kept her out of competitions, she says Liu gives her hope.
"You fall all the time in skating and it gets you down, but she just keeps pushing. She does incredible jumps and works so hard," says Kupiloff. "There's just something about her skating that's unmatched."
Gold-medal Olympian Alysa Liu with a young skater at Oakland Ice Center.
Eight-year-old Charlotte Murphy says she got Liu's autograph here at the center recently during practice. Now, along with a photo of Liu, she says it's a prized possession.
"I love her personality, how she's kind a lot. What I love about her is that she's a good ice skater and I really look foward to being just like her in ice skating in the Olympics," says Murphy.
Friends say Liu participated in Oakland Ice Center's Learn to Skate program. Liu's friend Scarlet Simon is the coordinator and a coach for the program. She says Liu shows that children's dreams do come true.
True to her community
"She truly loves this sport and there's just no one like her honestly," says Simon. She shows off a San Jose Sharks jersey with Liu's name on it. It's a gift for Liu when she returns home to Oakland.
For now, savoring a golden moment, friends and fans say Liu won gold not only for her country, but for her community in Oakland.
Oakland's got a lot of pride in the city itself. This just amplifies it. Alysa is such an ambassador for the city.
Amber Lee is a reporter with KTVU. Email Amber at Amber.Lee@Fox.com or text/leave a message at 510-599-3922. Follow her on Facebook @AmberKTVU, Instagram @AmberKTVU or Twitter @AmberKTVU
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