As seen in several Olympics, the pressure got to the competitors, and they could not execute their planned competitions. From Ilia Malinen to Simone Biles to many more, their bodies did not cooperate along with the expectations of both the athlete and the audience of media and nations.
What Alysa Liu did brilliantly is have no expectation and only skate for her own sense of presentation and for the love of her sport. She did not take on any feelings of pressure to win gold and just skated her heart out to showcase her skills and perform.
Having a daughter who was a competitive skater, even with the same coach as Alysa before he moved to California, I’m well aware of the competitive nerves. The skaters know that people came to watch and do not want to disappoint. Many feel like they have to win. Many parents pressure the skaters to win. There are supportive parents and nasty parents. Three are nice competitors and mean ones. One day’s bad program happens to everyone – it happens to all sports, even an entire team like in football. I’ve seen it all.
I would love to have Alysa’s attitude change the psyche of figure skating and all sports. Perform with joy and no expectation.
PR