Gu Ailing’s new role: ambassador for Olympic Bid of Salt Lake city

Gu Ailing, one of China’s most popular but controversial winter Olympic athletes, reinvented herself Tuesday as an ambassador for the United States bid to bring the 2030 or 2034 Winter Games to Salt Lake City.

Gu made the announcement at the Time Magazine Summit. She is the youngest speaker at the summit.

Gu became a household name in China after winning two gold medals and one silver for her country at the Beijing Olympics. Tall, chippy and brimming with athleticism, she combined that with the clever use of her Chinese-American identity to make her a breakout star in China.

Tom Kelly, a spokesman for the United States Bid, confirmed Tuesday that Ms. Gu was working on the bid as an “athlete representative.” “She’s working with us,” but “we haven’t decided on a specific title for her.”

Kelly also said Gu would not travel with the Salt Lake City delegation to Lausanne, Switzerland, next week to meet with INTERNATIONAL Olympic Committee officials. Kelly said Fraser Bullock, the director of Salt Lake City’s Olympic bid, and Lindsey Vonn, an American skier, would travel to Lausanne with the delegation.

Kelly’s response seems to suggest that Gu is getting ahead of herself by calling herself an “Ambassador for the Olympic bid.”

Gu, 18, was born in the United States. According to online information, her mother is a native of Beijing. She graduated from Peking University and went to the United States to study. Her father is American, but Gu was raised by her single mother.

Gu, who is not only a talented skier but also a good pianist, has been accepted by Stanford University, a top US university, and plans to enter this fall.

Chinese media say Gu’s hard work and multi-faceted talents have made her an icon for millions of Chinese, which has also brought her huge business profits. During her time in China, she is said to have made hundreds of millions of yuan from various sources, including endorsements.

The most controversial aspect of Gu’s case is her nationality. She studiously avoided the issue when facing the media. One of her most famous sayings is that in China she is Chinese and in America she is American. But in today’s nationalistic China, it is hard to accept that an American citizen is making Chinese money in the name of being “Chinese”.

Gu’s appointment as Salt Lake City ambassador is another reminder to the Chinese public that the “patriotic” girl they love has always been an American through and through. In an interview with Time on Tuesday, Gu also said skiing and the “ambassador bid” were “a beautiful example of globalism.”

Gu’s status has also caused considerable controversy in the United States. Some US media believe that Gu was born and raised in the United States. It is unfair for her to compete for China instead of playing for the US after gaining her athletic skills in the US. There are even questions about Gu’s divisive nationality loyalties.

The Associated Press said Gu’s increased work for the U.S. will inevitably affect her popularity in China at a time when U.S.-China relations are becoming increasingly confrontational.

In addition to Salt Lake City in the United States, Sapporo in Japan and Vancouver in The Canadian province of Bischit are currently bidding to host the 2030 Games. Spain has also expressed interest in bidding to host the Games.

The international Olympic Committee is expected to announce the host country for the next Winter Games when it meets in Mumbai, India, in 2023.