02/20/2026
I love Alysa Liu’s comeback story as it really epitomizes how owning your purpose in sport and having many facets to your identity make you the best version of yourself. When Alysa was younger she was thrust into skating without knowing her “why” and she had no other pieces to her identity. She was Alysa, the skater, who was isolated from society and her “purpose “ for skating was to win. Does this sound familiar runner friends?
You don’t need to be away at competitions all the time to be isolated; if you are not present when you are with family and friends, skipping opportunities to be with others all the time because it will affect your running, you indeed are isolated. And as discussed, time and time again, “to win” or “to BQ” or “to get XYZ time goal” is not a purpose, it’s a goal. And goals are sustainable for a short time but are not sustainable for long durations of time and will not give you longevity in the sport you love.
So Alysa retired because her goal to win wasn’t sustainable to stay in love with skating. During that time she searched for other parts her identity outside skating. Alysa did this by doing other fun things with her friends as she enjoys connecting with others like going to concerts, staying up late to have a bonfire, climbing mountains and skiing (these are the few things she mentions in interviews I’m sure there are many more). During this time of exploring she not only had other things in life outside of skating that brought her joy but she began to understand her purpose. Eventually she wants to come back to skating because now she understands her “why” and although she never straight up states this in an interview one can read between the lines. Skating challenges her in a way that no other sport or life endeavor does, she enjoys that challenge. Skating allows her to be her true creative self and tell a story on ice through her skating and feeling that energy as a crowd understands her story feeds her soul. And all the sudden, she is back and now unstoppable. As they stated in her last skating performance, she did not care if she got a medal. She cared about showing the world what she is capable of and sharing her art through skating. That purpose ultimately allowed her to skate relaxed because her purpose has nothing to do with winning; if she conveys her story through skating, she has won in her eyes. And because she skates so relaxed and with joy, low and behold, she wins gold.
Similar to running, if you run for a greater purpose, you will run relaxed and with joy and if you never get your “gold medal” you will still feel so satisfied with what you do because running is another extension of who you are and how you show up in this world. And that’s how sports can change your life.
Interested in seeing how running can change your life? PM me as I would love to work with you! , , , , , , www.rws-endurance.com