Alysa Liu World Championships withdrawal shifts U.S. lineup for Prague event
PRAGUE, Czech Republic — Alysa Liu appears to have withdrawn from the world figure skating championships in Prague after she was removed from the International Skating Union’s participant list. As of 11: 30 a. m. ET Sunday, Liu’s spot had been filled by Sarah Everhardt, changing the expected U. S. lineup for the event later this month.
The apparent move comes less than a month after Liu won Olympic gold in Milan and roughly a month after her finish atop the podium at the Milan Cortina Games. No reason for Liu’s absence from the roster was publicly known in the information available, and her representatives had been contacted for comment.
Alysa Liu World Championships roster change shows Sarah Everhardt added
Liu is no longer listed among the event’s participants on the ISU website, a change that effectively removes her from the starting field for Prague. Her place is now held by Everhardt, who was designated as the second alternative for the event.
In the U. S. team picture for Prague, Everhardt is set to skate alongside Amber Glenn and Isabeau Levito. The lineup shift also follows another withdrawal: first alternate Bradie Tennell also pulled out, clearing the way for Everhardt to move into the field.
The world figure skating championships are scheduled to begin March 24 at the O2 Arena in Prague.
International Skating Union list changes after Milan Cortina Olympic gold
Liu’s apparent withdrawal follows a high-profile stretch after the Olympics. She has been doing numerous interviews and talk show appearances celebrating her victory at Milan Cortina, and she had been positioned to skate worlds as the defending world champion after winning the title in Boston last March.
That Boston win was described as a milestone for U. S. women’s figure skating, and it set the stage for Liu’s subsequent Olympic success in Milan. The Prague event was scheduled about a month after the Winter Games, placing it shortly after the most intense part of the season.
Instagram post describes being chased to her car before Prague listing update
Days before the roster update, Liu wrote on social media that she was recently “chased” to her car by a spectator after landing at an airport. In an Instagram story, she described a crowd at an exit with cameras asking her to sign items, adding that people were “all up in my personal space” and asking them not to do that.
Separately, Liu has previously stepped away from the sport. After competing at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and world championships in 2022, she retired, later describing that it felt like a job. Her father, Arthur Liu, said at the time that she became unhappy and that she was “traumatized, ” using the term PTSD in his description.
Liu returned to competition in 2024. For now, the next confirmed step on the calendar is the opening of the world figure skating championships in Prague on March 24, when Everhardt is slated to take the spot Liu previously held.
