In 2019 freestyle skier Eileen Gu, who was born and raised in San Francisco and had represented the United States in international competition, announced that going forward she would compete for China, where her mother was born and where she regularly spent time visiting. She stated that she wanted to be a role model for Chinese women and girls and to promote their participation in winter sports. During the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, a period of growing geopolitical tensions between the United States and China, Gu’s decision came under heavy scrutiny, especially from commentators in the United States.