U.S. Women [#8]: Meet Me in St. Louis

[Rukia]

4 years ago there were so many people who would have sworn Amber would never get it together and now she's going to the Olympics and I think that's very cool

 

[Karen-W]

4 years ago there were so many people who would have sworn Amber would never get it together and now she's going to the Olympics and I think that's very cool

I was one of them. I'm glad to have been wrong on that one.

 

[A.H.Black]

When someone is described as super-competitive (like Sarah last night) I assume that’s code for the “I’m not here to make friends” behavior you see in reality shows.

I thought that too, but then there was a backstage shot of Amber helping Sarah with her dress (the hooks on the neck, I think). I thought Sarah must feel comfortable enough with Amber, at least to have her help her, and probably to ask her for help. I think she's probably quite introverted.

 

[Karen-W]

Press Release announcing the Olympic team and alternates -

U.S. Figure Skating Nominates 16 Athletes to 2026 U.S. Olympic Team - U.S. Figure Skating

U.S. Figure Skating today announced the 16 skaters nominated to the U.S. Olympic Team for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.

usfigureskating.org

Women - Amber Glenn, Isabeau Levito, Alysa Liu
1st Alternate - Bradie Tennell, 2nd Alternate - Sarah Everhardt, 3rd Alternate - Starr Andrews

Worlds
Women - Amber Glenn, Isabeau Levito, Alysa Liu
1st Alternate - Bradie Tennell, 2nd Alternate - Sarah Everhardt, 3rd Alternate - Starr Andrews

4CCs
Women - Starr Andrews, Sarah Everhardt, Bradie Tennell
1st Alt - Elyce Lin-Gracey, 2nd Alt - Josephine Lee, 3rd Alt - Katie Shen

Jr Worlds
Women - Angela Shao, Sophie Joline von Felten
1st Alt - Annika Chao, 2nd Alt - Sherry Zhang, 3rd Alt - Emilia Nemirovsky

I think about the only surprising thing here is that Alina Bonillo was passed over for the 4CCs 3rd Alternate in favor of Katie Shen.

 

[Vagabond]

Amber Glenn has become the doyenne of U.S. figure skaters. They clearly look up to her, even when they are trying to beat her.

 

[Allskate]

This video of itty bitty Isabeau talking about the Olympics is hilarious and adorable:

usfigureskating | Original audio on Instagram

Listen to usfigureskating on Instagram and watch reels with original audio

www.instagram.com

She's got a deal with Everlane, a clothing company. This promotional piece she did for them also has some video of her when she was little:

EVERLANE on Instagram: "Isabeau Levito represents the next generation of U.S. figure skating. We were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of her process, drawing inspiration for her choreography from ballet."

5,085 likes, 37 comments - everlane on January 8, 2026: "Isabeau Levito represents the next generation of U.S. figure skating. We were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of her process, drawing inspiration for her choreography from ballet.".

www.instagram.com

She might sow some divisiveness with this other Everlane video, though. She is re-reading "Where the Crawdads Sing." She managed to cross-promote Red Bull at the same time.

EVERLANE on Instagram: "We’re ready for a trinket tour when you are @isabeau.levito"

5,798 likes, 60 comments - everlane on January 10, 2026: "We’re ready for a trinket tour when you are @isabeau.levito".

www.instagram.com

 

[Allskate]

Here are videos of Alysa, Isabeau, and Amber officially being told that they made the Olympic team:
Amber:

U.S. Figure Skating on Instagram: "OLYMPIAN AMBER GLENN, Y’ALL! ✨🇺🇸 #WinterOlympics"

4,621 likes, 52 comments - usfigureskating on January 11, 2026: "OLYMPIAN AMBER GLENN, Y’ALL! ✨🇺🇸 #WinterOlympics".

www.instagram.com

Isabeau:

U.S. Figure Skating on Instagram: "Welcome to the Olympic team, @isabeau.levito!! 🇺🇸✨ #WinterOlympics"

4,089 likes, 32 comments - usfigureskating on January 11, 2026: "Welcome to the Olympic team, @isabeau.levito!! 🇺🇸✨ #WinterOlympics".

www.instagram.com

Alysa:

U.S. Figure Skating on Instagram: "WELCOME BACK QUEEN @alysaxliu 👑🇺🇸 #WinterOlympics"

5,733 likes, 36 comments - usfigureskating on January 11, 2026: "WELCOME BACK QUEEN @alysaxliu 👑🇺🇸 #WinterOlympics".

www.instagram.com

 

[skatfan]

MacArthur Park for Milan!

https://www.olympics.com/en/milano-cortina-2026/news/alysa-liu-says-lady-gaga-free-skate-unlikely-for-milano-cortina-2026

 

[BaileyCatts]

......

Now I'm gonna say it: US Sweep in Milan!!!

Your thoughts...

Kaori says hold my beer.

 

[tangerine dream]

Kaori says hold my beer.

Seriously.

I don't imagine anyone thinks a US sweep is likely, but seeing as all three women are medal contenders the idea is bound to pop up somewhere. It is not an impossibility, but it would require multiple significant mistakes by Kaori (and likely others), and I hope no one is wishing for that to happen, although I'm sure Kaori would be as gracious and lovely as ever if it did.

 

[BaileyCatts]

MacArthur Park for Milan!

https://www.olympics.com/en/milano-cortina-2026/news/alysa-liu-says-lady-gaga-free-skate-unlikely-for-milano-cortina-2026

Thank gawd! I think it might have potential if she works on it for next season though. It needs a lot more ...... more. That dress is stunning though.

 

[Allskate]

MacArthur Park for Milan!

And a new dress. Metallic with a fresh twist. I wonder if it will be inspired by her new hair.

ETA: Alysa is so much fun. In the press conference today, her response to a question about the team event was that Amber should do the men's SP and Alysa and Isabeau should do both pairs segments. Fun way to dodge a thorny issue.

 

[BaileyCatts]

Seriously.

I don't imagine anyone thinks a US sweep is likely, but seeing as all three women are medal contenders the idea is bound to pop up somewhere. It is not an impossibility, but it would require multiple significant mistakes by Kaori (and likely others), and I hope no one is wishing for that to happen, although I'm sure Kaori would be as gracious and lovely as ever if it did.

True dat. I think there will only be 1 US woman on the podium and her name is Alysa.

 

[tangerine dream]

And a new dress. Metallic with a fresh twist. I wonder if it will be inspired by her new hair.

I like the new Gaga platinum dress and think it would go well with her disco Donna Summer program.

 

[Allskate]

I like the new Gaga platinum dress and think it would go well with her disco Donna Summer program.

Maybe she can do the GaGa program with that dress as an exhibition?

I wonder what Alysa means when she says that the new dress will have a "fresh twist." Alysa does like to keep us on our toes.

 

[tony]

Since she said out loud, was told that she was planning Gaga for the team event and then Donna Summer for the individual event. It’s still worded kinda interesting that makes me think she could do that.

Unless she’s not getting the team event and/or the free skate now. Malinin doesn’t want both segments so there’s one, and I really can’t see Chock and Bates doing both now with that even worse schedule. So does Amber get the assignment?

 

[BaileyCatts]

Since she said out loud, was told that she was planning Gaga for the team event and then Donna Summer for the individual event. It’s still worded kinda interesting that makes me think she could do that.

Unless she’s not getting the team event and/or the free skate now. Malinin doesn’t want both segments so there’s one, and I really can’t see Chock and Bates doing both now with that even worse schedule. So does Amber get the assignment?

No. Just no.

 

[tony]

No. Just no.

Why not though? She won everything in sight until Worlds last year, won Nationals this year, has the highest scoring potential in the SP and even with a so-so free skate, she’s still almost sure to finish ahead of Guttman and Schizas/Schild at the very least, and quite possibly Gubanova too. I don’t think it’s super high-risk.

 

[haribobo]

Hopefully I did this right...

SENIOR ELIG in 2026-27
Logan Higase-Chen 9/08
Sherry Zhang 12/08
Sophie Joline Von Felten 4/09
---------------------

SENIOR ELIG in 2027-28
Kaya Tiernan 9/09
Annika Chao 10/09
Emilia Nemirovsky 3/10
Jessica Jurka 6/10
-----------------------

SENIOR ELIG in 28-29
Sofia Bezkorovainaya 8/10
Angela Shao 10/10
Alayna Coats 6/11
--------------------------

SENIOR ELIG in 29-30
Hannah Kim 7/11
Rachel Samiri 7/11

 

[Karen-W]

I think the concern with Amber is the potential that she misses the 3A in the SP and her score drops her behind several other skaters who have demonstrated the ability to beat her when she's made mistakes. Alysa's scoring potential in the SP isn't as high but she's so steady & rock-solid that you just know she'll be no lower than 2nd and could very easily be 1st.

The wording in the article is definitely interesting, but it's also Alysa and having watched her in the press conferences over the past few days, one thing I've learned is she can be a little scatter-brained, so I don't know if her remarks are necessarily because she knows she won't be doing the TE FS or the TE at all. It may just be that she isn't ready to articulate publicly why the Gaga program is being abandoned for the Olympics completely because it's kind of been dangled out there with some degree of anticipation since Skate America.

 

[tangerine dream]

Why not though? She won everything in sight until Worlds last year, won Nationals this year, has the highest scoring potential in the SP and even with a so-so free skate, she’s still almost sure to finish ahead of Guttman and Schizas/Schild at the very least, and quite possibly Gubanova too. I don’t think it’s super high-risk.

I think it will be a tough decision. Either would likely do a good job and both are more than worthy. Is one more favored with USFSA? Will they pass over Alysa again after they did it in 2022 when she had the best fall season of the US women but had to withdraw from Nationals after the SP because she tested positive for covid? I know there was some speculation at the time that she had to limit how much time she spent in China because of the situation with her dad, but I can't imagine Alysa would have turned down the team event and a guaranteed olympic medal.

 

[Vagabond]

Why not though? She won everything in sight until Worlds last year, won Nationals this year, has the highest scoring potential in the SP and even with a so-so free skate, she’s still almost sure to finish ahead of Guttman and Schizas/Schild at the very least, and quite possibly Gubanova too. I don’t think it’s super high-risk.

At the 2025 World Team Trophy, Glenn finished seventh in the Short Program behind Liu, Sakamoto, Gubanova, Chiba, Gutmann, and Schizas. Scratch out Liu and one of the Japanese and add in a South Korean woman, and Glenn could quite possibly finish sixth. I think that such a scenario is much more plausible than one with Liu or Levito in sixth place in the Team Evant Short Program.

As I have said in another thread, I am prepared to eat my words and would even like to be proved wrong.

 

[skatfan]

Liu all the way. Liu has beaten Amber at Worlds and World Team Trophy and won the Grand Prix Final in December. She hasn’t really had a bad comp since Worlds. Amber is great but it’s riskier to choose her. Why wouldn’t one choose the World Champion who doesn’t let pressure get to her?

 

[Allskate]

The wording in the article is definitely interesting, but it's also Alysa and having watched her in the press conferences over the past few days, one thing I've learned is she can be a little scatter-brained, so I don't know if her remarks are necessarily because she knows she won't be doing the TE FS or the TE at all. It may just be that she isn't ready to articulate publicly why the Gaga program is being abandoned for the Olympics completely because it's kind of been dangled out there with some degree of anticipation since Skate America.

I think she genuinely has fun dangling things out there and keeping people wondering and waiting. The article says that the GaGa program was ready before the GP Final. If she were seriously considering using it for the Olympics, she would have tested it out before an international judging panel. She continued training MacArthur Park even while preparing GaGa for Nationals. And she says that, for Milano, "It was always gonna be MacArthur Park.”

She likes teasing with the triple axel, too. She has posted video of one and teased it on Fallon. You mention being scatter-brained. She said at one point this week that she didn't practice the triple axel in preparation for Nationals because she didn't realize that Nationals was so close. Weird. You would think that her coaches would remind her.

As for the TE, in the press conference, Alysa's first response to the question was "messy." Then she said that she didn't even know how the assignments were made and how they qualified. (Isabeau was dodging, too. Her response: "We're all qualified." And then she happily agreed with Alysa's joking suggestion about Amber doing men's and Alysa and Isabeau doing pairs. The moderator realized they were heading off into silliness again like the movie debate and ended the press conference. Otherwise, I think Amber would have answered. She is the one who puts an end to the silliness and reminds the other two what the question was. Very much the role of big sister.)

 

[tony]

At the 2025 World Team Trophy, Glenn finished seventh in the Short Program behind Liu, Sakamoto, Gubanova, Chiba, Gutmann, and Schizas. Scratch out Liu and one of the Japanese and add in a South Korean woman, and Glenn could quite possibly finish sixth. I think that such a scenario is much more plausible than one with Liu or Levito in sixth place in the Team Evant Short Program.

As I have said in another thread, I am prepared to eat my words and would even like to be proved wrong.

Or she could also skate like she has in every event prior to Worlds, Cup of China where she won overall against Liu, or Nationals where she once again was higher than Liu.

If the US is throwing someone not-Ilia in the free skate (Andrew) and then also Emilia and Vadym, they are likely to lose quite a few points there. They are prioritizing individual golds and the fact that Amber could run away with the short program may be a good enough bet to get points back, even if minimal.

Anyways, we will know tomorrow.

 

[Karen-W]

Yes, they were definitely all dodging in the press conference the question of the Team Event. What was odd was that the reporter only asked it of the Women. Even if they were asked to not purpose that line of questioning for the remaining press conferences, then why wasn't it asked of the Men which was held before the Women - something along the lines of "Ilia, any chance you would do both segments of the TE?"

 

[SkateSand]

It's so really rare that we've had a consistent competitor like Alysa, that I can't believe they wouldn't choose her for the team event. At the Olympics, don't you want your most consistent skater? The one who has proven she handles pressure the best at the most pressure-filled event?

 

[skatfan]

Or she could also skate like she has in every event prior to Worlds, Cup of China where she won overall against Liu, or Nationals where she once again was higher than Liu.

And we just don’t know which Amber will show up. That’s the problem.

Frankly, if I were on the US team I’d love to have the Alysa vibe.

 

[Karen-W]

It's so really rare that we've had a consistent competitor like Alysa, that I can't believe they wouldn't choose her for the team event. At the Olympics, don't you want your most consistent skater? The one who has proven she handles pressure the best at the most pressure-filled event?

And has the benefit of already having competed in the Olympics too. Even with the pandemic restrictions, she's already gone through the emotions and journey of this unique sporting competition that is like nothing the others have experienced.

 

[Allskate]

Even if they were asked to not purpose that line of questioning for the remaining press conferences, then why wasn't it asked of the Men which was held before the Women - something along the lines of "Ilia, any chance you would do both segments of the TE?"

Because they didn't want to implicitly say to Andrew and Max, "You two are really unreliable and would likely place poorly in the free skate in the TE, and Ilia and the women are so much better?" Or, they didn't want to make llia looks selfish or not like a team player? (I really do understand why Ilia doesn't want to do both segments, but I also wonder if he could be convinced to do a relatively easy long program and be cast as the hero.)

I think they are going to go with Alysa in the TE. I feel bad for Amber. And also for Isabeau. All three of them have been awesome and definitely better than some of the skaters who will get to compete and come home with an Olympic medal.