China’s Eileen Gu pulls out of Asian Winter Games after injury in training

Gu’s Weibo post announces withdrawal from Games in Harbin ‘with a heavy heart’

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Eileen Gu is helped by medics after her initial injury during the X Games in Aspen on January 24. Photo: Getty Images via AFP

Published: 4:48pm, 4 Feb 2025Updated: 5:44pm, 5 Feb 2025

Eileen Gu announced on Tuesday that she had been forced to pull out of this month’s Asian Winter Games, after reinjuring herself during training for a World Cup event last weekend.

The Olympian said it was with “a heavy heart” that she had to withdraw from China’s team for the multi-sport event in the northeastern Chinese city of Harbin, which is gearing up to be the largest edition of the Games yet.

Freestyle skier Gu was initially hurt during the Winter X Games in Aspen 10 days ago, when she crashed into safety netting and was left “unable to walk”.

And in a post on her Weibo account, she revealed that she “got injured again” as she attempted to get fit enough to “participate in the World Cup that followed”.

Eileen Gu revealed her latest injury on social media. Photo: Getty Images via AFP

Gu had been among the big names in a 170-strong China delegation for Harbin, with the double Olympic gold medallist joined by the likes of fellow freestyle skiers Xu Mengtao and Qi Guangpu. The Games officially open on Friday.

“Today, I have to withdraw from the long-anticipated Asian Winter Games in Harbin with a heavy heart,” she wrote on social media. “I wish the Chinese athletes the best results. I will also actively cooperate with the doctor in rehabilitation and strive to return to the sport as soon as possible this season.