For Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu and Isabeau Levito, it’s good vibes all around

4 days ago 2

ST. LOUIS — For as serious a sport as figure skating is, you wouldn’t have known it based on the vibes during the news conference after the women’s short program concluded at the U.S. championships Wednesday night.

Need proof? Here's what Isabeau Levito said is her favorite quality of Alysa Liu, reigning world champion.

“She keeps the hoes on their toes,” Levito said, leading to a chorus of laughter. “I couldn't help it.”

After a sensational end to the women’s short program at the 2026 U.S. figure skating championships, it might as well have been happy hour at the bar for Levito, Liu and Amber Glenn, two-time defending U.S. champion. You wouldn’t have guessed Liu set the championship-record short program score, only for Glenn to shatter it less than 15 minutes later.

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The sport is so highly competitive. Rivalries can fester easily and tension between skaters can be cut with a plastic knife.

But how times have changed with this group. The vibes are immaculate. We're in a new golden era for U.S. women's figure skating that could yield Olympic medals for the first time in 20 years.

“I just think that we are all trying to lift each other up, and in doing so, it just pushes people to the top,” Glenn said. “I think it's just all about that and doing it in a healthy way. And that's the future of our sport.”

It may shock some of the longtime figure skating viewers, who can likely name numerous feuds throughout the years, including the infamous Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan rivalry.

That bad blood even stuck around for Glenn to experience firsthand. The veteran of this group at 26 years old, she told reporters recently that she remembers the palpable tension between skaters older than her when she was starting out. She said the comparisons “just got really out of hand,” and she just wanted to feel comfortable in the locker room.

Now, that doesn’t appear to be the case with this crop of skaters leading the charge.

Glenn said they are “more social, we're closer,” with Levito adding they all realize “it's not that deep.”

“We're all doing something that we're passionate about and that we love, so we all just want to do our best at every competition,” Levito said.

They don’t just say it, they show it, too.

Levito actually watched Liu’s routine, even though she was scheduled to go after her. When she saw Liu’s score of 81.11, Levito didn’t get upset or feel the pressure to out perform. She simply just got excited because “that's a really nice score.”

And when Levito was on the ice for her program, Liu didn’t go back to the locker room. She instead stayed right near the ice to watch Levito. Typically, that could really rattle a skater or generate extra nerves, but they love seeing each other perform. As a bonus, Liu said it fuels them by the time it’s their turn to take the ice.

“I view all of us as independent artists. Like, what we do doesn't necessarily affect someone in a good way or bad way. It shouldn't affect anyone. Like, we came here to perform and show what we're capable of and to entertain people,” Liu said. “I love to be here and support.”

It all culminated with Glenn’s rousing program that featured a flawless triple Axel and ended the night with an event record score of 83.05. When Glenn made it backstage, she was greeted by Liu and Levito as they cracked jokes and laughed.

At the end of the news conference, Glenn, Liu and Levito were asked about the traits they admire in each other, and they all gushed about each other to put a perfect end to the night.

U.S. Figure Skating will announce the Olympic roster on Jan. 11, but it’s looking like these three skaters are destined to go to Milano Cortina together. If that’s the case, expect plenty more of the positive, unhinged and chaotically fun nature they share – and some medals to go along with it.

“These two crack me up together. It is so funny,” Glenn said. “I love being at events with these two ladies. I'm so happy that we're here together, and hopefully we will be together later this month.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: For US figure skating’s top trio of women, it’s nothing but good vibes

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