Amber Glenn Takes Gold in Figure Skating Grand Prix

Amber Glenn, bisexual and pansexual icon, brings home the gold for the U.S. for the first time in 14 years. She won at one of the most prestigious events for figure skating, the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final. She’s been setting records this whole year, having won the U.S. Women’s Figure Skating Championship in January as well. She was also the first queer woman to do so. To top it off, she won all four of her competitions this season, including international ones as well. NBC Sports reports that she was the first woman to land a clean triple Axel as well, her signature move.

The Grand Prix took place in Grenoble, France from December 5 through 8 this year. She’s competed on the Grand Prix circuit for seven years, 2024 marking the first year she qualified, and then took home the gold. With her routine in the short program, set to Janet Jackson’s “This Time,” she started her winning streak. She finished off with seven triple jumps, an incredibly difficult feat and one of the most difficult according to the Olympics. She beat her runner up, Mone Chiba, by 2.33 points, bringing the U.S. a medal for the first time in over a decade.

In an interview with Today, Glenn shared that her success was in large part due to taking care of her own mental health. “I’d get halfway through a performance and realize I’m performing for thousands of people on live TV and it would kind of scare me … I’ve been working with a neurotherapist, and it’s been very helpful to stay locked in and also get to enjoy these amazing performances I get to do around the world.” Glenn has had the physical ability to do those complicated and intense moves for a long time, getting over the mental block was the important next step.

Featured photo courtesy of social media