In just four months the world’s greatest collection of winter athletes will convene for the Games of the XXI Winter Olympics, held February 12-28 in Vancouver, British Columbia. It will be the third time that Canada has played host to an Olympic event, and first in British Columbia, following the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal and the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary.
SK's ice darling.
While many story lines persist from the XX Winter Olympics held in Turin, Italy, most notably the Korean domination in short-track speed skating, most eyes will be fixated on a Korean prodigy competing in what has become the Winter Games’ marquee event: women’s figure skating.
At just 19-years-old, Kim Yeon-ah is the reigning ladies singles World and Four Continent’s champion, and heads to her first Olympic Games ranked first in the world in ladies singles by the International Skating Union, the international governing body of ice skating disciplines. Though new to the Olympic stage, competition is nothing new to Kim who has competed internationally since the age of 11, when she won the novice portion of the Triglav Trophy, held in Jesenice, Slovenia.
In the 2006-2007 season Kim made her senior international debut and has not looked back since. With her combination of jumps, spins, and technical merit, Kim has set numerous point records within the ISU Judging system, which took over the 6.0-point system in 2004.
Throughout the XX Winter Olympics South Korea competed as Korea while North Korea competed at the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. During the opening ceremonies, both teams entered the stadium behind the Korean Unification Flag.
While I’m not a huge follower of the Winter Games, I am a bit interested in seeing how Kim handles the pressure. Have you heard any hype surrounding Kim and her first Olympic competition? What do you think about the Koreas competing in international events? Do you feel athletics play any roll in reunification awareness?
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One of the the biggest Asian cinema events to hit Southern California opens on May 10. The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, presented by Visual Communications, features the latest works by established and emerging filmmakers, along with seminars, panel discussions and symposiums on topics relevant to Asian Pacific cinema.
Opening Night features “Shanghai Calling,” directed by Daniel Hsia and starring Korean American Daniel Henney, who plays a Chinese American expat lawyer navigating his way through the mean streets of Shanghai (the picture above also indicates he is a raisin smuggler). But does he take off his shirt? Go watch the movie to find out! read more
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