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Teenage figure skating sensation Alysa Liu brought K-pop to China Sunday as she performed to ITZY’s latest single, “LOCO,” as part of the Olympic figure skating exhibition gala. The two-time U.S. champion placed seventh overall in the controversial women’s event, but was invited to participate in the gala, typically reserved only for medallists.
Literally screamed when I saw #AlysaLiu performing to @ITZYofficial “LOCO” at the #OlympicGames figure skating gala today in Beijing 😲❤️😭🙏🏻 We love to see it! pic.twitter.com/D19XDJWm2h
— Tim Chan (@mrtimchan) February 20, 2022
According to reports, Liu did not have an exhibition program prepared, but she was able to throw together a program last-minute, skating to one of her favorite groups — and favorite songs. The program, performed before a reduced capacity crowd at Capital Indoor Stadium in Beijing, featured upbeat choreography and an ending pose inspired by ITZY’s video for “LOCO,” which has racked up a whopping 151 million views on YouTube.
The 16-year-old Liu, who often posts about her love for K-pop on social media, took to Instagram after the gala performance, writing “MY FAVORITE GALA PROGRAM IVE EVER DONE AND I GOT TO SKATE TO ITZY?!!?!! this is actually insane. this is such a great way to end the olympics!! i couldn’t be happier.”
Liu made history in 2019 when the then-14-year-old became youngest ladies national champion in U.S. figure skating history. Known for her trademark triple axel, the skater added to her repertoire recently, becoming the first American female skater to successfully land a quadruple lutz — a casual four revolutions in the air.
“LOCO,” meantime, was the first single off ITZY’s album, Crazy in Love, which the five-piece K-pop act dropped last fall. The album includes both English and Korean versions of “LOCO,” with Liu choosing to perform the latter. ITZY fans immediately had the performance trending on Twitter, and the group retweeted a tweet from the Korean Olympic Committee, praising Liu for her performance.
Missed Liu’s performance to ITZY from the Olympics figure skating gala? You can watch the full performance — and all of the 2022 Olympic events — on-demand with a subscription to Peacock. One month of the streaming service is just $4.99, making it an easy way to catch up on all the Olympic events and highlights you may have missed.