Gracie Gold’s captivating journey in the sport of figure skating, at times exhilarating, at other times troubling, took yet another turn Wednesday evening when the 23-year-old two-time national champion and 2014 Olympic team bronze medalist withdrew from the upcoming national championships in Detroit.
Gold said on Instagram that this isn’t the end for her, that she’s already working hard to “get a jump start” on next season, with the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing being her ultimate goal.
But after undergoing treatment for what she said was depression, anxiety and an eating disorder in 2017 and missing the 2018 Olympic season, then having a very difficult time when she returned to competition two months ago, Gold’s path forward is anything but certain.