Olympic gold medalist Alysa Liu announced she's taking the upcoming figure skating season off and plans to return in 2027-28.
In a social media post Tuesday, Liu wrote that she's looking to "take the time to recalibrate."
"I always want to challenge myself in new ways, so my artistry & skating can evolve," she wrote, in part, on Instagram. "It's important to me that my sport reflects my personal growth. I'm gonna take the time to recalibrate, fine-tune things & whatnot. So fear not, I'll be back, & in the meantime I'll be rooting for my teammates near & far. See yall soon!!"
Liu, 21, became the first American woman to win a Winter Games gold medal in more than two decades back in February in Milan and returned to the United States a national hero. She previously withdrew from this year's figure skating world championships a month after the Winter Games ended, a common occurrence for Olympic athletes.
In an interview with NBC Sports, Liu said she'll spend the time off continuing to train and hone her skills.
"I really want to improve my skating, and I wanted to take the time to do that for myself and just to evolve, and then I'll be back after that is done," she said in the interview. "But I'll still be cheering on all my competitors and my teammates, and I'm really excited."
Liu had been scheduled to compete in the first leg of Skate America's Grand Prix in Everett, Washington on Nov. 13-15 before her announcement Tuesday.
