When the curtain rose on the women’s figure skating event at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina, all eyes were on a trio who’ve been dubbed the "Blade Angels": Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu, and Isabeau Levito. This dynamic U.S. team has not only captured the attention of the judges and fans in the arena but also sparked a social media frenzy, redefining what it means to be a figure skating star in the modern era.
On February 16, 2026, pop superstar Taylor Swift introduced the "Blade Angels" in a video that quickly went viral. Swift, whose knack for storytelling is legendary, narrated the backstories of Glenn, Liu, and Levito, blending her signature style with a heartfelt message to all U.S. Olympic athletes: "I just wanted to say thank you. Getting to learn new stories and see everything you've sacrificed and all your determination, hard work, and passion. Everything that has got you to this point where you're so excellent at something is just really inspiring," Swift said in the video. She added, "I'm very grateful for everything you've done to get to this point in your life and grateful that you've all brought us along with you on this journey, so we get to watch you do this. I just hope you have a wonderful Olympic Games. Wishing you all the best of luck and a safe journey, and I hope this is an experience that you will cherish for the rest of your life."
The timing couldn’t have been better. The women’s figure skating event officially kicked off on Tuesday, February 17, with the short program airing on USA Network and NBC, and streaming options on Peacock, NBCOlympics.com, Hulu + Live, YouTube TV, and Sling TV. Glenn, Liu, and Levito all skated in Group 5—the final and highest-ranked group—starting around 2:40 p.m. ET. The stakes were sky-high: the U.S. women’s team is hungry to break a 20-year medal drought since Sasha Cohen’s silver in 2006.
But it’s Alysa Liu who’s been the biggest story of the Games, both on and off the ice. Now 20 years old, Liu made history as the youngest women’s national champion at age 13 and was the first U.S. female figure skater to land a quadruple jump in international competition. Yet, just three years after her meteoric rise, she stunned the skating world by announcing her retirement. "I was done a year before I quit. I knew I wanted to be done way before I actually announced my retirement," Liu told NBC. She described leaving the sport as a teenager, feeling homesick and longing for a normal life with family and friends.
Her coach, Philip De Gallielmo, who’s guided her since she was five, admitted he was initially against her comeback: "I said, Please don't. I really did. I said, Please don't respect your legacy." But after a two-hour Zoom call, Liu convinced him to support her return. With just seven months of training, she pulled off a feat no one had before: coming back from retirement to win a world title. "Nobody's ever taken this time off, come back and won the world championships," De Gallielmo marveled.
Liu’s new era is about self-expression and joy. She’s become an icon for individuality in a sport often defined by tradition and conformity. Sporting dyed halo hair—adding a new stripe each year since 2023—dark eyeliner, and a smiley frenulum piercing she did herself, Liu is rewriting the rules for what a figure skater can look like. "Someone called my style alternative, and I'd agree with that," she told NBC. Her outfits, which now include spiral-adorned tights and skating dresses inspired by Lady Gaga’s "Bad Romance," reflect her newfound control over her image and programs. "Figure skating gives off the persona of sophistication, grace, and elegance," her hairstylist Kelsey Miller told The FADER. "[But Liu proves] you can still be those things and skate while being your true self and rocking your personality."
Her decision to retire at 16 stemmed from a lack of agency: "All my memories from back then are gone. I have no idea how I felt in the moment. I have watched it, and I was crying, and I seemed super happy, so I guess I was very happy," she reflected to Elle. "I didn’t enjoy skating back then because I didn’t make my own programs, I didn’t design my own dresses—I was just following orders." But now, Liu beams with confidence and authenticity. "I have ideas and concepts that I want to share with the world, so I’m happy to be here, versus last time I was kind of like, 'Let's get this over with.' Now I want to be here, and I don’t want this to end," she told the Associated Press.
Her piercing, which she revealed to former Olympic figure skater Adam Rippon, is a testament to her DIY spirit. "I had my sister hold up my lip and I was looking in the mirror and I had my piercing needle and yeah, just put it through," Liu explained on the In the Loop podcast. She described picking up piercing as a hobby, saying, "Getting a pierced at a shop is really expensive for no reason. So I thought I would learn it myself, be a little DIY girl, but. Yeah, so I picked that up just because it’s cheaper and I trust myself a lot to get it in the right spot placement wise for the jewelry."
On the ice, Liu’s performances have been as bold as her look. She, Glenn, and Levito entered these Games ranked among the world’s top five, skating in the final group with the world’s best. Sports betting odds on February 17 gave Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto the edge for gold, but Liu wasn’t far behind, with odds of +320, Glenn at +700, and Levito at +3000. The U.S. team’s presence in Group 5 is a testament to their elite standing, and the anticipation for their free skate finals on Thursday, February 19, is palpable.
Levito, just 18 and hailing from Mount Holly, New Jersey, brings her own flair to the ice, while Glenn, from Colorado Springs, is ranked third in the world. Together, the "Blade Angels" are not just competing for medals—they’re showing the world that passion, individuality, and resilience are as much a part of Olympic glory as technical skill.
As the women’s figure skating event continues in Milan, fans and fellow athletes alike are witnessing a new chapter in the sport. The "Blade Angels" are skating not just for medals, but for the freedom to be themselves. With Taylor Swift’s words echoing in their ears and the world watching, these athletes are redefining what it means to be an Olympic figure skater—one bold performance at a time.