Mirai Nagasu at a young age established herself as one of the best figure skaters in the world. At 14, she became the second-youngest to win the U.S. senior ladies championship. Two years later, Nagasu competed in the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, finishing fourth in the ladies’ singles competition.
Nagasu returned to the Winter Olympics at PyeongChang 2018, where she became the first American woman to land a triple axel during Olympic competition and helped the U.S. win bronze in the ladies’ team event.
In addition to succeeding on the ice, Nagasu graduated from the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs with a business degree.
Nagasu’s parents were Japanese immigrants and raised her with the support of their family-owned and operated sushi restaurant, “In the Nagasu family there were always two kids even though I was the only child. The restaurant was my dad’s baby,” she said. “Growing up my dad didn’t really have time to come to my competitions. He only took time off to go to the Olympics and he joked that because I went to the Olympics twice he had to take two vacations!”
“But I know that I would not have gotten to the level that I’m at without my parents.”
The business took a hit during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, Nagasu devised a plan to deliver meals to overwhelmed hospital staff and used her Olympic platform to support the family restaurant on social media and in the press.