Joanna Ng (was: Pro-Am)
Sean Lin
... much deleted ...
to have gone into a tailspin. Taiwan never seems to qualify anybody
for the worlds or Olympics and I don't know whether Joanna even
... much deleted ...
Actually there was a male skater from Taiwan placed in the 23rd at 94' World.
Sean Lin
Trudi Marrapodi
young skater who won the Skate Canada ladies' interpretive
competition in 1990 was Joanna Ng, who was 11 at the time, still
competing for the USA, and skated more like an adult then than
Oksana Baiul does today, if you can believe that! She was skating
to a very hot version of "Night Train," and she had an elaborate
backstory to her interpretation--she was supposed to be a young
Vietnamese woman taken by an American soldier to the States and
abandoned there, where she becomes an exotic dancer to support
herself, and eventually dances herself into collapse. It was
incredible and I had great hopes for her in the future.
Unfortunately, since she began skating for Taiwan her career seems
for the worlds or Olympics and I don't know whether Joanna even
presume). It's a shame. She had more feel for the music and
artistic sense at 11 than some skaters get in a lifetime.
Oops, maybe I shouldn't have said all this--Chuckie will probably
get wind of it, tell us he has found a "Joanna Eng" who is skating
for North Vietnam, and proclaim that they are one and the same
person and that surely all of North Vietnam will be rejoicing when
she wins the 1998 Olympics (just ahead of Nicole Bobeck of
Austrailia and Tonya Harding representing the Independent Republic
of California...)
Trudi Marrapodi
tam...@rit.edu
S. Henry
>In article <Cox6w...@aplcenmp.apl.jhu.edu> sea...@aplcenmp.apl.jhu.edu (S. Henry) writes:
>
> ... much deleted ...
> (and that one is far away from Taipei, the biggest city) I would assume
> that it would be tough for Taiwan to "grow their own".
> ... much deleted ...
>
>I used to iceskate in one of the two rinks in Taipei 15 years ago, what
>happened to them?
>
>Sean Lin
The only one I know about was turned into a bowling alley/roller rink.
My wife was going to take me ice skating, so I carried my stuff and
road five different buses completely across the city and then found
out that there was no ice! (And that selfish rink owner wouldn't let
me use my ice skates on either the roller rink or on the bowling lanes!)
I drove down to the middle part of the island to this supposedly big
recreation city that boasted "the only ice in Taiwan" (according to my
wife). We stayed in a hotel about six blocks from the rink. I was real
hot to go over and see if there were any good skaters, but the rest of
my travel group (all native Taiwanese) refused to go, instead they
took me to see some stupid native dancers.
I carried my skates half-way round the world and didn't get to use them!
Anyway, to get back to my previous question, anyone have any additional
info on Joanna Ng and/or how Taiwan treats its skaters? BTW, my wife
(who cannot tell a bowling alley from an ice rink) INSISTS that "Ng"
is neither Chinese nor Taiwanese, but probably Vietnamese. That same
wife (who takes me 12,000 miles around the world to within six blocks
of an ice rink without letting me see it) also insists that Tiffany
Chin's family was from Taiwan and that she was exploring the option of
skating for that country at one time.
Sean (Pissed at his wife) H.
S. Henry
> young skater who won the Skate Canada ladies' interpretive
> competition in 1990 was Joanna Ng, who was 11 at the time, still
> competing for the USA, and skated more like an adult then than
> Oksana Baiul does today, if you can believe that! She was skating
> to a very hot version of "Night Train," and she had an elaborate
> backstory to her interpretation--she was supposed to be a young
> Vietnamese woman taken by an American soldier to the States and
> abandoned there, where she becomes an exotic dancer to support
> herself, and eventually dances herself into collapse. It was
> incredible and I had great hopes for her in the future.
>
> Unfortunately, since she began skating for Taiwan her career seems
> to have gone into a tailspin. Taiwan never seems to qualify anybody
> for the worlds or Olympics and I don't know whether Joanna even
> skates that well anymore now that her body has developed (I
> presume). It's a shame. She had more feel for the music and
> artistic sense at 11 than some skaters get in a lifetime.
>
> Trudi Marrapodi
> tam...@rit.edu
>
>
Trudy any actual details on how Taiwan treats their skaters? If my
son ever goes into skating he should be eligible to skate for either
the U.S. or Taiwan. Since the entire country has only one ice rink
(and that one is far away from Taipei, the biggest city) I would assume
that it would be tough for Taiwan to "grow their own".
The question isn't that pressing now, he's only 16 months, but he has
been on the ice in skates and he LOVES it (the speed, the music, the
babes? who knows what goes on in a 16-month-old's brain?). He also
has this strange attraction for Katarina Witt, when she's on t.v., he
can't take his eyes off of her!
Sean
Venus Sinn
His name is David Liu, I met him in Hong Kong several years ago.
Venus
Sean Lin
... much deleted ...
the U.S. or Taiwan. Since the entire country has only one ice rink
(and that one is far away from Taipei, the biggest city) I would assume
that it would be tough for Taiwan to "grow their own".
ikone...@eagle.wesleyan.edu
many, many years. He has wonderful presentation, but is a weak jumper.In article <LIN.94Ap...@mop.mop.caltech.edu>, l...@mop.mop.caltech.edu
Julia Chu
sea...@aplcenmp.apl.jhu.edu (S. Henry) writes:
> Anyway, to get back to my previous question, anyone have any additional
> info on Joanna Ng and/or how Taiwan treats its skaters? BTW, my wife
> (who cannot tell a bowling alley from an ice rink) INSISTS that "Ng"
> is neither Chinese nor Taiwanese, but probably Vietnamese.
I skated at a rink in Taipei 10 or 12 years ago. It was very narrow,
and the ice was *not* good. I wore yucky rental skates, and a T-shirt
and shorts (pretty scary to have no leg coverings). Anyway, there was
a pro there giving a lesson, and she was *way* too impressed with my
skating, despite the fact that I only did singles and a few spins. I
got the impression that the level of skating there was pretty low. The
coach didn't look particularly comfortable doing even backward
crossovers.
As for "Ng", it seems to be more common as a Vietnamese name, but I
have known a few Chinese named "Ng". It depends a lot on how the name
is Anglicized.
Bettina Helms
VS>> for the worlds or Olympics and I don't know whether Joanna even
.......
VS>>Actually there was a male skater from Taiwan placed in the 23rd at
VS>>94' Worlds
VS>His name is David Liu, I met him in Hong Kong several years ago.
Not only did he make the 1994 Worlds, he was in the 1992 Winter
Olympics. Strictly speaking, he's a dual-citizenship case: he's a US
citizen, but he has recent enough roots in Taiwan that he is entitled to
skate for them. The reason he wasn't at the 1994 Winter Olympics is that
he didn't make it through the qualifying round at the 1993 Worlds. Quite
a few other skaters (and countries) got shafted the same way, so the
International Skating Union is going to try to work out some other means
of getting the World Championships down to reasonable size - before the
1998 Winter Olympics.
* OLX 2.1 TD * Exactly what was I talking about anyway???
Bettina Helms
TM>young skater who won the Skate Canada ladies' interpretive
TM>competition in 1990 was Joanna Ng, who was 11 at the time, still
TM>competing for the USA, and skated more like an adult then than
TM>Oksana Baiul does today, if you can believe that!
Eeuww - I have enough trouble tolerating Baiul's Lolita-isms at age 16
(or didn't she just turn 17?). I *really* loathed them when she was 15.
For the record, it's not that I have anything against Baiul personally,
but the whole idea of underage sexpots makes my skin crawl. And the more
underage they are, the more repulsive it is. "Jailbait" ought to be a
major insult - teenyboppers who lead adult males on and get the men
thrown in the slammer, while *they* get off scot-free, are indulging in
behavior that is not only immoral (and I *don't* mean in a sexual
sense), it is downright cruel.
TM>She was skating to a very hot version of "Night Train," and she had
TM>an elaborate backstory to her interpretation--she was supposed to be
TM>a young Vietnamese woman taken by an American soldier to the States
TM>and abandoned there, where she becomes an exotic dancer to support
TM>herself, and eventually dances herself into collapse. It was
TM>incredible and I had great hopes for her in the future.
"Precocious" is the only possible word to describe this.
TM>Unfortunately, since she began skating for Taiwan her career seems
TM>to have gone into a tailspin. Taiwan never seems to qualify anybody
TM>for the worlds or Olympics
Two words: David Liu.
TM>Oops, maybe I shouldn't have said all this--Chuckie will probably
TM>get wind of it, tell us he has found a "Joanna Eng" who is skating
TM>for North Vietnam, and proclaim that they are one and the same
TM>person and that surely all of North Vietnam will be rejoicing when
TM>she wins the 1998 Olympics (just ahead of Nicole Bobeck of
TM>Austrailia and Tonya Harding representing the Independent Republic
TM>of California...)
Now that you've given Chuckie the idea, he/they probably *will* do just
that. :-P
* OLX 2.1 TD * The Log Lady's bark is worse than her bite.