This is not just a few figure skating announcers. The Brits as a nation have been doing this for at least a couple of centuries. Churchill stubbornly stuck to pronouncing "Nazis" as "Nartzees". Butchering French words has a hoary tradition there and was an infallible test of ethnicity long before DNA was discovered. Younger Brits have moved away from the linguistic mayhem of their forefathers, but I believe Prince Philip is still among the most instrumental in keeping alive the grand British tradition of the Cultural Gaffe.Question!
Why does the British Eurosport pronounce Yuzuru's name wrong most of the time? For example Yazunori. And why do they sometimes mess up the skaters countries? For example Patrick Chan of China and Mirai Nagasu of Japan.
A list of the Duke of Edinburgh's 65 greatest hits: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/prince-philip-quotes-relive-65-1445185
Some gems:
9 To President of Nigeria, who was in national dress, 2003: “You look like you’re ready for bed!”
14 To a British trekker in Papua New Guinea, 1998: “You managed not to get eaten then?”
25 To a woman solicitor, 1987: “I thought it was against the law for a woman to solicit.”
36 To Scottish driving instructor, 1995: “How do you keep the natives off the booze long enough to pass the test?”
65 “People think there’s a rigid class system here, but dukes have even been known to marry chorus girls. Some have even married Americans.”
If there is one thing that can be said for him, he seems to be an equal opportunity offender.
Americans were never quite as bad, if only because a longer history of immigration provided more frequent opportunities for bringing a broader range of names and nationalities to the attention of the public at large.
(I kid, of course )