Interest

The Apparent Origin Story of Olympic Gold Skater Alysa Liu's Pochita Plush

American figure skater Alysa Liu is arguably the most televised anime fan this month, with her twin gold medals (and Pochita plush tissue case from Chainsaw Man) at the 2026 Winter Olympics. But where did her Pochita come from? Japanese social media offers a likely origin story:

On February 7, Japanese X (formerly Twitter) user Ii thanked Liu for taking the Pochita plush to the Olympics. The fan said they gifted her with the plush at the Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final in Nagoya in December.

アリサ・リウ選手へ

GPF名古屋でプレゼントBOXに入れたポチタのティッシュケースぬいをミラノ・コルティナダンペッツォオリンピックに連れて行ってくれてありがとおぉぉぉおお！（Instagramのstory参照）
アリサはこの後の開会式に出るのね。演技したばかりなのにパワフル✨✨✨ pic.twitter.com/iqicBgl4YZ

— いー (@koikerieka) February 6, 2026

To Alysa Liu
Thank you sooooo much for bringing the Pochita tissue case plushie I put in your gift box at the GPF Nagoya to the Olympics in Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo! (from your Instagram stories)
Alysa is participating in the opening ceremony after this. She's so powerful, even though she just competed!✨✨✨

The timeline matches up, since Liu began toting a Pochita on-camera at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in early January, just one month after the Grand Prix Final. Liu had even posted an Instagram story with the plush just before the Olympic opening ceremony on February 6, although she didn't actually carry it into the ceremony (on television at least).

アリサのストーリーにポチタ！？
ミラノにまで連れて行ってるのかな
チェンソー好きなんだ🧡🧡🧡
なんかうれし〜！ pic.twitter.com/ps2Gc7PP5E

— まりん!!! on ICE@c107（火）南2e-25a (@love_ruri) February 7, 2026

Pochita in Alysa's Instagram story!?
Seems like she brought it to Milano?
She's gotta love Chainsaw Man🧡🧡🧡
Makes me so happy~!

Liu boasts an impressive figure skating record since she won silver at the Junior Grand Prix Final and gold at the U.S. Championships in the 2019-2020 season. She subsequently won bronze at the 2020 World Junior Championships and gold at the U.S. Championships. During the 2021-2022 season she won the gold at the Cranberry Cup International, CS Lombardia Trophy 2021, and the CS Nebelhorn Trophy 2021, and won bronze at the World Championships. Liu struggled late in the 2021-2022 season, placing fourth at the 2021 NHK Trophy. She was forced to withdraw from the 2022 U.S. Championships after testing positive for COVID-19, and placed sixth at the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

Liu retired from competitive figure skating in April 2022, but then announced in March 2024 she would return to the sport. She then won silver at the 2025 and 2026 U.S. Championships, and gold at the 2025 World Championships and 2025-26 Grand Prix Final.

Liu has also won gold as part of Team USA at the 2025 World Team Trophy, before scoring a team gold and an individual gold at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Appropriately, she shared the Olympic podium with two Japanese skaters, silver medalist Kaori Sakamoto and bronze medalist Ami Nakai.

Sources: @koikerieka's X/Twitter account, @love_ruri's X/Twitter account, NBC, International Skating Union