Feb 20 (Reuters) - Alysa Liu delivered a dazzling performance to win the gold at the Milano Cortina Games on Thursday as she capped a remarkable comeback journey to snap a 20-year Olympic medal drought for Americans in the women's figure skating event.
Japan's Kaori Sakamoto took silver, finishing ahead of her 17-year-old teammate Ami Nakai, who claimed bronze.
Skating with joyful confidence, Liu nailed jump after jump in her Donna Summer disco-themed free skate to bring the sold-out crowd to their feet.
"When I was skating, hearing the cheers, I felt so connected with the audience. I want to be out there again," she said.
"The way I felt out there was calm, happy and confident. I've been having fun. This experience is really cool."
COMEBACK QUEEN
Liu stunned the skating world when she retired from the sport aged just 16 after the Beijing Games in 2022, citing burnout and the desire to pursue other interests.
The Californian returned two years later with a new perspective - and more creative control - taking charge of her music choices, programmes and costumes. That reset helped spark a resurgence that included a world title in Boston last year.
Aptly dressed in a shimmering gold outfit, the 20-year-old joyously celebrated her flawless display by playfully flicking back her striped ponytail at the end of her routine.
Her performance left her teammate Ilia Malinin punching the air in delight as he cheered on from the stands and earned Liu a season's best score of 150.20 for her free skate and a total of 226.79.
It was Liu's second gold medal in Milan following the United States' triumph in the team competition earlier in the Games.
She came into Thursday's competition as the U.S.'s last realistic hope for gold after teammates and fellow "Blade Angels" Amber Glenn and Isabeau Levito put themselves out of contention in Tuesday's short programme.
Liu pulled off seven soaring triple jumps on Thursday to become the first American woman to win an individual medal since Sasha Cohen captured silver in 2006 and the first U.S. gold medallist since Sarah Hughes triumphed in Salt Lake City in 2002.
SAKAMOTO DISAPPOINTED
Sakamoto, a favourite coming into the competition, was looking to win her first gold medal in her final Olympics but it was not to be as the three-time world champion and Beijing bronze medallist paid the price for failing to deliver one of her jump combinations.
As she skated off the ice with a bloodied knee, the pain was both physical and mental for Sakamoto, who burst into tears as realisation hit that her gold medal hopes had disappeared with that one jumping mishap.
She finished second with a total of 224.90.
"My goal was to get the gold medal, and now I feel so disappointed,” the 25-year-old said as the tears kept flowing even after the medals ceremony.
Nakai came into Thursday's free skate leading both Sakamoto and Liu. While she nailed her opening triple Axel, her next element did not go to plan as she mistimed the expected triple loop-triple toeloop combination and had to settle for a triple-double effort -- which effectively cost her the gold.
The 17-year-old surprisingly finished a lowly ninth in the free skate but secured bronze with a total of 219.16.
She said she never thought she would make the Olympic team, much less earn a medal, and hopes she can successfully take over the mantle from Sakamoto.
"It's my first and last time and at the Olympics with her," Nakai said of Sakamoto.
"I feel sad about that, but I think this means that moving forward, I am carrying the weight of the Japan team, so I'd like to do well for the next Olympics as well."
Japan's Mone Chiba finished fourth on her Olympic debut. American Amber Glenn rebounded from 13th spot following the short programme to finish fifth overall, while Russia's Adeliia Petrosian fell on a quad attempt and placed sixth.
They were all left looking up at Liu, who said she felt unburdened by the pressure of the sport's biggest stage.
"The most important part of my story is human connection," she said.
"That's all I want in my life, is human connection. And damn now I connect with a hella ton of people. So that's my dream, and I am glad that I have my creative ideas and can share those as well.
"I think my story is more important than anything (results or medals), and that's what I will hold dear. And this journey has been incredible."
The women's event closed the figure skating programme at the Milano Cortina Games. Musician Megan Thee Stallion and tennis great Maria Sharapova were among those in attendance.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Milan, Additional reporting by Lori Ewing and Agnieszka Flak; editing by Pritha Sarkar)
