Eileen Gu: Navigating two cultures, judged by both of them

BEIJING (AP) — She is an exceptional athlete who has already won gold and silver in the Beijing Olympics.

But the deep fascination and even obsession with Eileen Gu’s origin story has threatened to overshadow anything she does on the slopes.

The frenzy to “explain” Gu’s choice may reflect biases and misunderstandings in the United States about Asian American identity.

The 18-year-old athlete has genuinely strong connections to China.

That aligns her with a growing trend among Chinese Americans that are taking advantage of opportunities and resources both in the Western countries where they grew up and in an increasingly wealthy mainland China.