The Comfort Rooms

How Kim Yu-Na Converted Me To Figure Skating

First off, I was never a figure skating nor a Winter Olympics fan. I was aware of its existence but I have never got to watch it. Not even in Salt Lake City way back in 2002. I was just familiar with Tara Lipinski, Michelle Kwan. Apollo Ohno, Kristi Yamaguchi, Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan.However, that alienation has changed when South Korea's Kim Yu-Na suddenly hit the newsstands last week culminating to her winning the Olympic gold in figure skating.

I was surprised that a South Korean was the heavy favorite to win the gold in Vancouver. Never thought a Korean has already excelled in figure skating. My mind went thinking during that time and it exactly went like this: If this Korean will win the gold, I will officially be convinced that Koreans have really arrived (in the world stage).

And winning the gold she really did. In sterling fashion at that.

Her signature triple-triple (flips) has been her one-stop shop and a respectable commentator has observed that whenever she displays her triple-triple, it almost automatically converts to a gold-medal winning performance. Watching her perform (on YouTube), I must say, she must be really good.

Besides her techinical skills, it is her grace that is really amazing. She can look really vulnerable yet at the same time magical. It was Kim herself who said that figure skating is both a sport and an art. And looking at her perform, she looks like a ballerina on skates. Her performances are more than art, they're masterpieces.

Go check her out. Google her, YouTube her, what-have-you. See for yourself and judge if she's really amazing or not. As far as I'm concerned, she has just won yet another fan.