Eileen Gu Makes Blunt Demand About Mom Yan's 'Panda' Hat Before Olympic Final

Perhaps the most polarizing athlete competing at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games is freestyle skier Eileen Gu.

The 22-year-old (who won two gold medals and one silver at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and already secured another silver in slopestyle in Italy) is competing for Team China despite being born and raised in the United States and attending college at Stanford University.

Eileen Gu of China | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

Gu (her Chinese name is Gu Ailing) has claimed that she chose to represent China in part to honor her mother, Yan.

But it's hard to imagine that the $23 million she makes annually from endorsements and modeling (much of which comes directly from her ties to China, as many endorsements are with Chinese companies) didn't play a role in her decision.

Regardless of how spectators feel about Gu as a person or her career decisions, nobody can deny that she's a world-class freestyle skier.

And Gu is going for gold on February 16 in the big air final.

Eileen Gu's Message About Mom's 'Panda Hat' Raises Eyebrows

Gu has unconditional support from her mother, Yan, who has been by her side throughout these Olympic Games.

On February 16, the @olympics Instagram account posted a photo of Gu and her mom embracing after an event.

Gu then reposted this to her Instagram story and added the caption, "My mom is so cute".

She then added, "Everyone to tell her she looks cute in her panda hat 🫵".

Eileen Gu's February 15 Instagram story. | Instagram/@eileengu

Gu's mom can be seen wearing a black and white hat in the photo, which is clearly what Gu is referring to. This hat decision is sure to turn some heads.

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