Sarah Hughes’ 2002 Olympic performance: A look back at surprise gold

Alysa Liu ended a 24-year streak at the 2026 Winter Olympics on Thursday, Feb. 19, becoming the first American to win women’s singles since Sarah Hughes in 2002.

Liu finished in sixth place in women’s singles at the 2022 Winter Olympics as a 16-year-old before she retired from the sport. She returned in 2024, winning the world championship in 2025 before winning Olympic gold in 2026.

Liu’s excellence on the ice – she also won gold as part of the team event – has brought Hughes’ 2002 performance back in the limelight. Here’s a look back at Hughes’ gold-medal winning skate at the 2002 Winter Olympics on American soil in Salt Lake City:

Sarah Hughes Olympic gold medal performance in 2002

Hughes shocked the world when she won gold in women’s singles at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, moving from fourth after the short program to winning gold after her magnificent free skate performance.

Hughes, an underdog heading into the Games, won bronze at the world championship and at the U.S. Championships in 2001, leading up to the Olympics. She never won a top-tier women’s singles event outside of the Olympics, making the performance even more legendary.

The then-16-year-old beat out fellow American Michelle Kwan, who won silver in the 1998 Winter Olympics and was the three-time reigning world champion at the time.

“I think a lot of people counted me out and didn’t think I could do it,” Hughes said after the win. “I didn’t even think it would be possible.”

Hughes became the first Olympic champion to have never won a national or international title before, in true underdog fashion.

Here’s a look back at her final performance:

Americans to win gold in Olympic women’s singles

Here’s the full list of Americans to win gold in women’s singles at the Olympics:

• Alysa Liu (2026)
• Sarah Hughes (2002)
• Tara Lipinski (1998)
• Kristi Yamaguchi (1992)
• Dorothy Hamill (1976)
• Peggy Fleming (1968)
• Carol Heiss (1960)
• Tenley Albright (1956)