Alysa Liu’s defining Olympic night and a shine that bucks her sport’s expectations

MILAN — The gold Alysa Liu seemed to care most about was her dress. She couldn’t wait to show off the custom sleeveless costume covered in shimmering sequins. It sparkled like a strobe light under this Olympic fluorescence. That’s what she wanted. To shimmer. To illuminate. After all it took her to get on this platform, shining only made sense. Big stages command matching swag. Epic moments call for appropriate moxy. So Liu flexed by wearing gold. Not as a prediction of her success, but as an ou