Eileen Gu learns how to slalom between US, Chinese cultures

When American-born freestyle skier Eileen Gu announced that she would compete for China during the 2022 Winter Olympics, she got a lot of heat from her native country.

But a divergent voice has materialized in the Chinese diaspora and the Chinese American community. Amid the scrutiny of the 18-year-old skier, who won two gold medals and a silver at this month's Games, a renewed confidence and interest in Chinese heritage have emerged. 

He Xiaopei, founder of the San Francisco-based US Chinese Dance Association, which showcases Chinese culture through dance, said she is proud of Gu's achievements and is excited that someone from the younger generation is willing to bridge the cultural gap between China and the West. 

The sports prowess of the young athlete, who won the gold in women's big air freestyle and halfpipe, and silver in women's slopestyle, shouldn't be overshadowed by questions about her nationality, He told China Daily. 

"My view is: If you are of Chinese descent, no matter what your nationality is, as long as you make a contribution in your own field, you will make us feel proud as Chinese," she said.    

"This whole Eileen Gu thing has driven home that consciously (and subconsciously), I often have to emphasize my American citizenship more than my Chinese heritage, in reaction to the constant state of insecurity that immigrants are placed into in the US as perpetual foreigners," wrote Rui Ma in a recent Twitter post. 

Ma, founder of San Francisco-based investment consulting firm Tech Buzz, was born in China but grew up in the US. She noted that as tension has increased between the two countries over the past few years, it has become more difficult to identify as Chinese, especially on social media. 

"But now I am rethinking that. Yes, I am 'Chinese', I am ethnically and culturally Chinese, and it's not OK for anyone to insinuate that I'm somehow a bad actor just because that's my heritage and I happen to have very deep expertise in the areas I do relate to China and on some (maybe many) points, you disagree with me," she added.  

Like Ma, world champion freestyle skier Gu, nicknamed "Snow Princess", grew up straddling two different cultures. She is known in China as Gu Ailing.

Born in San Francisco to a Chinese mother and an American father, she was raised by her mother and maternal grandmother. Her talent in skiing became evident at a young age. 

In 2019, months after winning a World Cup event in Italy as a 15-year-old, the teenager drew mixed reactions when she announced on Instagram that she would be competing under the Chinese flag for the 2022 Winter Olympics.

"I am proud of my heritage, and equally proud of my American upbringing. The opportunity to help inspire millions of young people where my mom was born, during the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games, is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help to promote the sport I love," Gu wrote.

She said that she hopes to promote understanding and friendship between nations through skiing. In interviews, she has said that her goal is to encourage more girls and women to take up winter sports.

While Gu has become a sensation on Chinese social media, she has raised many eyebrows in the US. In some media coverage, she was portrayed as a traitor, while others implied that her decision to join the Chinese team was financially motivated.    

"She can stay in China. We should insist she stays in China," a user wrote on Facebook, under a story about Gu. 

"They should revoke her US citizenship," another said.

"She's in it for the green," a third person said.

Lu Wei, a leader of the Northern California Chinese Culture Athletic Federation, said she knows Gu and her mother because they all belong to the same WeChat group created by ski enthusiasts in the San Francisco Bay area. Lu said she watched Gu grow through each ski training session and was impressed by her talent and dedication to the sport. 

There is a lot of speculation online on why she chose to compete for China, but Lu said Gu's deep relationship with the country took shape at a young age. 

One of her first mentors in skiing was Lu Jian, founder of Beijing's Nanshan Ski Resort, who had sponsored Gu's training trip to China every year since she was 9, Lu told China Daily. 

Gu isn't the only athlete to compete for a different country. 

Beverly Yi Zhu and Ashley Lin, both figure skaters, were born in the US and now represent China. 

British American athlete Gus Kenworthy, who skied for the US in the 2014 and 2018 Games, joined the Great Britain squad in 2019.  

Louie Vito, born in Ohio, chose to compete for Italy in the halfpipe at the Winter Olympics this year.

In an opinion piece for Cosmopolitan magazine, writer and reporter Cathaleen Chen, who immigrated to the US from China at age 8, said Gu "vindicated" her decision to cheer for China as an American citizen.

"To be honest, I've never cared for skiing. I hadn't even heard of freestyle skiing before Gu popped up on my radar. But I'll be watching and rooting for her at this year's Games. Because her decision to ski for China is a validation that I didn't know I had been yearning for. Finally, I've learned how to be proud again. And as an Asian American, pride is all we've got for now," Chen wrote. 

Since her rise to fame, Gu has signed deals with 23 sponsors across diverse industries, including luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton and Tiffany, and automaker Cadillac, as well as Chinese e-commerce giant JD and telecom carrier China Mobile, reported media outlet Yicai Global in Shanghai.

Gu already was making more than $31 million last year from brand endorsements, according to CBN Data, a Shanghai-based market research firm.