American-born Team China Olympic skier Eileen continues to center herself as the most polarizing subject of the Milan Cortina Winter Games. 

An interaction Tuesday with a reporter went viral after Gu responded to a question about her winning two silver medals instead of gold so far this Olympics, suggesting the question came from a “ridiculous perspective.”

“I’m the most decorated female freeskier in history. I think that’s an answer in and of itself,” Gu said when asked if she saw her two medals as “silvers earned” or “golds lost.”

FORMER NBA PLAYER ENES KANTER FREEDOM CALLS EILEEN GU ‘A TRAITOR’ FOR REPRESENTING CHINA AT OLYMPICS

“How do I say this? Winning a medal at the Olympics is a life-changing experience for every athlete. Doing it five times is exponentially harder because every medal is equally hard for me, but everybody else’s expectations rise, right? 

“The two medals lost situation, to be quite frank with you, I think is kind of a ridiculous perspective to take. I’m showcasing my best skiing. I’m doing things that quite literally have never been done before. So, I think that is more than good enough, but thank you.”

Gu’s answer drew mixed reactions on social media after she had already been a target of immense global criticism for her decision to represent China over her home country, the U.S.

Gu has won two silver medals in freestyle skiing in Milan Cortina in the slopestyle and big air events. She has one final event, the halfpipe, remaining Saturday and has an opportunity to add to her total.

AMERICAN OLYMPIC SKIER HUNTER HESS ‘CANNOT WAIT TO REPRESENT TEAM USA’ AFTER TRUMP BACKLASH

Eileen Gu of China reacts after her first jump in the women’s freestyle skiing big air qualification during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at Livigno Snow Park Feb. 14, 2026. (Joe Camporeale/Imagn Images)

Gu has been the subject of global criticism since her decision to represent China dating back to the original decision in 2019 and her first Winter Olympics in Beijing in 2022. This year, that criticism has ramped up as she has won two silver medals and even responded to a question about President Donald Trump criticizing U.S. Olympian Hunter Hess for being critical of the current state of America.

“I’m sorry that the headline that is eclipsing the Olympics has to be something so unrelated to the spirit of the Games. It really runs contrary to everything the Olympics should be,” Gu told reporters Monday.

“The whole point of sport is to bring people together. … One of the very few common languages, that of the human body, that of the human spirit, the competitive spirit, the capacity to break not only records, but especially in our sport, literally the human limit. How wonderful is that?”

Gu also claimed she had been “caught in the crossfire” herself. 

“As someone who has got caught in the crossfire before, I feel sorry for the athletes,” Gu said. “I hope that they can ski to their very best.”

Vice President JD Vance weighed in on the controversy surrounding Gu in an interview Tuesday on Fox News’ “The Story With Martha MacCallum.”

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Silver medalist Eileen Gu of China attends the awarding ceremony for the freestyle skiing women’s freeski big air event at the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Livigno, Italy, Feb. 16, 2026.  (Hongxiang/Xinhua via Getty Images)

“I certainly think that someone who grew up in the United States of America who benefited from our education system, from the freedoms and liberties that makes this country a great place, I would hope they want to compete with the United States of America,” Vance said.

“So, I’m going to root for American athletes. I think part of that is people who identify themselves as Americans. That’s who I’m rooting for in this Olympics.”

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Jon Scheyer said he “could have said even more” in response to a local district attorney’s claims that there was “zero evidence” to support the Duke coach’s initial claim that Blue Devils staffers were punched in a recent court storming at rival North Carolina.

Jeff Nieman, the district attorney for Orange County — which includes Chapel Hill, North Carolina — disputed Scheyer’s account of the Feb. 7 court-storming incident and added that Scheyer “should exercise more discretion” in his public comments.

Scheyer fired back at Nieman after the third-ranked Blue Devils’ 101-64 victory Monday over Syracuse.

“I would like to focus on Syracuse, but I’ll tell you that I know what I saw and I know what happened with our staff after the game — and that’s the bottom line,” Scheyer said. “I’m not going to circle back or get into — I don’t know what was said or wasn’t said or what people want to claim.

“But I know what happened, and I’m always going to support our staff in those situations and, again, I could have even said more, but I’m not going to do that.”

Seth Trimble‘s game-winning 3-pointer in the final seconds led to a pair of court-storming incidents for North Carolina, which defeated its archrival for the first time since the 2023-24 season.

After the loss, Scheyer claimed that some of his staff members had been “punched in the face” as UNC fans swarmed the court. A Duke spokesperson later said that one staff member had been hurt in the court storming without additional details.

Video of the aftermath appeared to show a person launching a bottle toward Duke players and staffers after the game.

Two days later, Scheyer clarified that one staff member had been hurt when they were “trampled,” adding that the staffer “looked like he had been in a complete brawl” after the game.

Nieman, a UNC graduate, originally sought video evidence of Scheyer’s claims. On Monday, he wrote on social media platform X that there was “zero evidence” of Scheyer’s original account. Furthermore, he said Scheyer’s comments could have created more issues.

“A week has passed, and what seemed likely is now patently obvious. There is zero evidence that anyone from Duke’s basketball program was ‘punched in the face’ at the Smith Center last week,” Nieman wrote. “Nor is there any evidence that a staffer was ‘trampled on the floor’ or ‘in a complete brawl,’ for that matter. Some have asked why I’m talking about this. It’s certainly not because of a sports rivalry. That’s no business of the DA’s Office. But I’ve seen firsthand how reckless accusations of violence incite more violence, and that is my business. Someone with the power and influence of a major men’s basketball coach should exercise more discretion before just saying things that can have real-world consequences.”

A week has passed, and what seemed likely is now patently obvious. There is zero evidence that anyone from Duke’s basketball program was “punched in the face” at the Smith Center last week. Nor is there any evidence that a staffer was “trampled on the floor” or “in a complete…

— DA Jeff Nieman (@JeffNiemanNC) February 16, 2026

After the game, North Carolina was fined $50,000 as part of new regulations and penalties for court storming.

“We accept the ACC’s fine for having unauthorized people on the court before Duke and the officials could completely clear the floor on Saturday,” UNC said in a statement after the fine was issued. “The video we have reviewed confirms we followed our protocols to get Duke’s players and bench personnel and the game officials off the floor safely. We will continue to review our protocols to provide the highest measures of safety in the event fans rush the court. We consider this matter closed and look forward to the rest of the season.”

After Monday’s game, Scheyer said the Blue Devils have put the UNC loss behind them.

“We’re moving on, and I’m really grateful for tonight’s win,” he said.