Makes a Courageous Comeback

When Gracie Gold arrived in Greensboro, North Carolina for the 2020 U.S. Championships, nobody — including herself — knew what to expect. It had been three years since the former two-time champion had competed at the national level, and she had been to hell and back in the interim.

Gold’s journey back to the U.S. Championships has been one of grit and determination. Her well-publicized battle with mental health issues and an eating disorder dominated the news for a long time, and it seemed her once promising career had come to an end.

Her 12th place finish in Greensboro was irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. Just to have made it back to the national stage was accomplishment enough for the 24-year-old.

At one point, Gold felt that returning to competition was unattainable and recalled thinking “we’re just going to have to pull the plug on this operation.” Mentally she had moved on. Her skating gear and costumes had been