Alysa Liu becomes Olympic champion after early retirement and comeback

Alysa Liu won women's Olympic figure skating gold in Milan-Cortina with a personal-best total of 226.79 after a season-best free skate of 150.20; she was the youngest U.S. champion at 13, retired at 16, and won the world title at 19.

Alysa Liu won the Olympic women's figure skating title at the Milan-Cortina Games. She delivered a season-best free skate that lifted her into the lead and produced a personal-best total score. Liu's path to gold follows early success as the youngest U.S. champion at 13, a retirement at 16, and a world championship at 19. The final podium also included Kaori Sakamoto in second and Ami Nakai in third. Key results: - Alysa Liu scored 150.20 in the free skate and posted a personal-best total of 226.79. - Kaori Sakamoto finished second and Ami Nakai of Japan finished third. - Liu was the youngest-ever U.S. champion at 13, announced a retirement at 16, and won the world championships at 19 before this Olympic victory. - American Amber Glenn received zero points for an invalid element in the short program, was 13th after the short, and finished fifth after a free skate scored 147.52 for a total of 214.91. - Liu is the first American woman to win Olympic figure skating gold since Sarah Hughes in 2002. Summary: Liu's victory ends a 24-year Olympic gold drought for American women in figure skating and adds a major milestone to a career marked by early success, a brief retirement, and a world title. Undetermined at this time.