Eileen Gu’s golden secret: ‘train like you’ve never won, compete like you’ve never lost’
China’s Olympic freestyle skier claims gold in season’s first Halfpipe World Cup with exceptional final run in challenging weather
Eileen Gu kept her perfect record at the Genting Resort Secret Garden intact on Saturday, battling challenging conditions and some brief self-doubt to claim gold in the first Halfpipe World Cup of the 2025-26 season.
The double Olympic gold medallist has never lost on the course that hosted the Beijing Games almost four years ago, and Gu laid down the kind of performance that had already earned her 18 World Cup titles heading into the weekend.
Still, it needed an exceptional final run amid challenging weather that affected the speed and amplitude of multiple skiers.
Before the 22-year-old Chinese Olympian’s last-ditch attempt, it was Great Britain’s Zoe Atkin who looked to be in the driver’s seat after she scored a 90.25 in her first run of the final, five points better than her rival’s opening score.
But with her back against the wall, Gu did not hold back and produced a string of tricks to post a winning score of 91.75.
“That was not easy. I’ve been struggling with speed all of training,” Gu said. “I actually almost didn’t compete because I was worried I wouldn’t be able to do my tricks at the amplitude I was at. That was the first full run that I’ve landed all day. It was such a mental battle.”