Alysa Liu opened up about her life as a person conceived via in vitro fertilization (IVF).
Liu is the oldest of five children, all born via surrogacy through two anonymous egg donors. The Winter Olympics and California star is the oldest sibling to Selina, Joshua, Justin, and Julia, with the latter three being triplets as a result of the process.
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That said, while Liu captivated the hearts of fans around the globe, more about her past is becoming known. This latest revelation comes after the star’s true colors were on full display behind the scenes of her Tonight Show appearance.
Speaking of being born through IVF, Liu explained what life was like for her and revealed that she “didn’t know about it for a long time.” In fact, the star shared that she knew she was different by comparing her appearance to her mother’s, who was Chinese.

“Because our mom is full Chinese, too. I was kind of like, ‘Oh, I totally don’t look full Chinese. Like, there’s something up,” she recalled. “And then I was like, ‘My mom’s really old. Like, there’s no way she gave birth gave birth to me.’ But so, I kind of put two and two together. And it hasn’t affected our family at all. We’re just kind of like, ‘It is what it is.’”

Liu also stated that her father’s ex-wife, Yan Qingxin, continued to take care of the children, dispelling the notion that she had been raised by a single father. That said, the Olympic star shared that her father’s, Arthur Liu, past actions — such as being smuggled out of Asia — influenced her.
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“So he was a student protester in China,” she continued, referring to his journey to the United States following the Tiananmen Square Protests in 1989. “And so he immigrated all the way here and built his life. Like, he left everything back in China to start fresh. So he’s really brave. And he breaks a lot of social norms.”
She added: “And he raised us to be, like, independent. Like we would take [the Bay Area Rapid Transit or BART] as kids all the time. He wasn’t there a lot because he would be at work. So, we have five kids. That’s a lot of kids to take care of.
“So he had to really work in the office all day long to provide for us financially. And figure skating is expensive.”

Because of her father’s experiences, the 20-year-old admitted that the family has been influenced in a number of ways, including politically.
Politics had been a key storyline throughout the Milan-Cortina games, with Donald Trump and members of his administration going back and forth with American athletes and athletes of other nations.
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As such, Liu shared that her family keeps abreast of political matters. “It’s the ideology to fight for what’s right and speak up and basic human rights, stuff like that,” Liu said when asked about her political leanings. “So our family is pretty liberal.
“And yeah, I would say thanks to my father. And we’re just proud of his story. We’re outspoken, too, just like he was, I would say. I mean, he was really outspoken; a whole other level.”


