The knowledge that Alyssa LiuThe name was pronounced incorrectly during his great victories to the Winter Olympics 2026 It’s a kind of Lutz.

Alysa Liu of Team USA competes in the women's individual figure skating free skate final during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at the Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan on February 19, 2026.
Alysa Liu of Team USA competes in the women’s individual figure skating free skate final during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at the Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan on February 19, 2026.

GABRIEL BOUYS via Getty Images

The 20-year-old American figure skater, who hails from the San Francisco Bay area, won two gold medals at the Cortina Games in Milan last month. She won a gold medal in the figure skating team event and another in the women’s individual event, and both times apparently had to settle for hearing her name announced like a barista would at a coffee shop.

on sunday, Newsweek published a fragment of an interview on Instagram They drove with Liu, in which she revealed the correct way to say her name, and it seemed like we were all on the road, shape off.

Liu attends a New York City Olympic event at Rockefeller Center on March 3, 2026.
Liu attends a New York City Olympic event at Rockefeller Center on March 3, 2026.

Manny Carabel via Getty Images

Most assumed her name was pronounced like Alyssa, or “uh-LISS-uh,” but Liu told the outlet that’s not entirely correct. He said his family pronounces it “eh-LEEZ-uh,” like the name Elise with an “A” at the end. But it seems like the athlete is used to people destroying her name.

“‘Alyssa’ is what my friends call me. And that’s what the world calls me,” she explained.

He also said that Liu is not pronounced as “Lu,” but as “Lee-oh,” which sounds a bit like The actual astrological sign of the figure skater.“Lion”.

“I personally don’t care,” Liu said of the way most people pronounce his last name. “That can be hard to pronounce and I don’t expect people to know how to say it.”

Liu celebrates on the podium during the women's single skating medal ceremony on February 19.
Liu celebrates on the podium during the women’s single skating medal ceremony on February 19.

Matthew Stockman via Getty Images

And hey, considering Liu is the first American woman to win gold in single figure skating since 2002, maybe we should all learn to say her name correctly.

However, one word that most can pronounce without any problem (but probably shouldn’t be uttered on national television) is “fuck,” and Liu had no problem. screaming excitedly after her dazzling free skate performance on February 19 in Milan, Italy, last month.

“That’s what I’m talking about!” she he shouted at the camera after her gold medal-winning performance, which was later censored by NBC on YouTube and social media.