What does it take to be a two-time Olympic Champion? Well, for Alysa Liu, her figure skating regime reportedly included a wild practice, wherein her water intake was controlled for her to not add ‘water weight.’ Ever since she made this confession, a debate has exploded online, with her fans lambasting this practice. Consequently, her ex-coach was forced to break her silence with a clarification.

Laura Lipetsky, the 2019 PSA Coach of the Year winner, has vehemently refuted the claims that she was the coach who denied Liu access to water.

“There has been a rumor circulating that I did not allow Alysa to drink water during training. This is simply not true,” Lipetsky wrote on her now private Instagram page, reported via FS Gossips.

She further clarified, “Athlete health and safety has always been a top priority in my coaching. At no time was Alysa ever prevented from having water or taking care of her physical needs.”

“Training at a high level requires discipline, structure, and mutual trust between coach and athlete. But that has never meant denying something as basic and important as hydration.”

This clarification from the former coach who parted ways with Liu in 2020, came in after Alysa Liu made the claims about being asked to avoid water in an interview on March 7.

The Olympian confessed, “It was crazy. They were like, ‘Oh, water weight. You shouldn’t drink water. You should gargle it.’ Crazy. It’s insane.”

Meanwhile, a former US National competitor herself, Lipetsky became a Team USA coach after she retired and has since coached several medalists. That includes Olympian Alysa Liu, who started coaching under her from the age of 5 until Liu and her father decided to part ways when she was 14.

During Lipetsky’s tenure as Liu’s coach, she shocked the world by becoming the youngest senior national champion ever at 13. Liu then added to that by becoming the youngest ever figure skater to win two senior US titles a year later.

Beyond that, together Alysa Liu and Lipetsky also won a bronze in the 2020 World Junior Championships and silver in the 2019/20 Junior Grand Prix Final. Lipetsky did touch upon that and was “proud” of their time together, but also hit out at fans and critics for lashing out at her in the aftermath of Liu’s comments in her interview with Rolling Stone.

“Alysa didn’t leave the sport when she was taking from me,” she added. “So please stop the hate. We had a lot of fun together. We played games on the ice, I made sure she had time to play with her friends on the ice, we laughed a ton, only trained 4 hours during the week….”

“She was never forced to do anything. She was self driven and loved to skate. I just kept her passion alive. So please stop the hate towards me and get the timelines right.”

Not to mention, Liu is in a much better space with figure skating. After winning two gold medals at the Winter Olympics, she’s proving that she is in charge of her career. Even when it comes to deciding which events she wants to attend.

Alysa Liu spotted at the Vanity Fair Oscars Party

However, now with Alysa Liu in complete control of her figure skating career, the 20-year-old is doing things her way. That includes a surprise withdrawal from the 2026 World Championships, which means she won’t be able to defend her title.

Instead, the Olympian has been enjoying herself. She attended Louis Vuitton’s Fall 2026 show at the Louvre and made multiple television appearances, including cameos on The Tonight Show and the Today Show, before walking the red carpet at the Vanity Fair Oscars Party.

Held at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the two-time Olympic gold-medalist quickly became one of the most talked-about names on the red carpet.

“I feel really good,” Liu told Entertainment Tonight, when asked how she felt about being there. “Um, and I feel, I don’t know, confident, and I know some people here, so yeah.”

However, her withdrawal from Worlds doesn’t mean the end of Alysa Liu’s season. If anything, it only means that the 20-year-old is taking a well-deserved refresher after a hectic few months. That is the pattern for most Olympic athletes, but she will return soon to the Stars on Ice Tour. It’s not a competitive event, but alongside Ilia Malinin, Liu will be headlining it from April 16 onwards.