Eileen Gu files Olympic complaint

Controversial Olympic athlete Eileen Gu called out the International Skiing and Snowboarding Federation (FIS) over the tight Olympic schedule she has, which she said will prevent her from getting in the proper training sessions she needs for a freeski event.

Gu, who will represent China at the 2026 Winter Olympics, made her thoughts known after securing a spot in the big air final, which takes place on Monday. She said competing in the final will take her away from practicing properly for the qualifying round of the halfpipe final, which takes place on Thursday.

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“I’m disappointed with the FIS,” she said. “I think the Olympics should be the epitome of aspiration and I think being able to do something out of the ordinary should be celebrated rather than punished.”

Gu said she didn’t try to get special treatment, just the same amount of training time as her competitors. She said she tried to compromise, including participating in the snowboarders’ practice on the halfpipe. She said the FIS told her it could not make the change because it would not be fair to the other competitors.

Gu already won silver in slopestyle earlier this week.

China’s Eileen Gu waits for her score while competing in the women’s freestyle skiing big air qualification at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Livigno, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

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“I think it’s really unfair. I think it’s punishing excellence, to be completely honest with you,” Gu added. “Because I dare to do three events, and that makes it completely impossible to train fairly for the third event.”

The FIS scheduled three practice sessions before qualifying – an increase from two for a typical World Cup event. The organization’s spokesman, Bruno Sassi, said that “every effort has been made to facilitate the best possible training” for the athletes.

“However, as we have already seen at these Games, for athletes who choose to compete in multiple disciplines and/or multiple events, conflicts can sometimes be unavoidable,” he said.

Gu, who was born in the United States but chose to compete for China, has not skied a halfpipe event since December and has not competed in big air since winning gold at the 2022 Beijing Games. The halfpipe event is a bit more dangerous than the other two.

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

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Gu will have the big air final on Monday, followed by the halfpipe qualifier on Thursday, with the final on Saturday.