“Like other Olympians, pop violinist Vanessa-Mae got to live her dream … but a lot slower than everyone else,” reads an unsigned Tuesday (2/18) Associated Press article. “She finished a distant last of 67 racers who completed the giant slalom. Her time of 3 minutes, 26.97 seconds over two runs was 50.1 seconds slower than the new Olympic champion, Tina Maze of Slovenia. But she was just thrilled to have taken part…. ‘To just share the same snow, to be able to slide down the same snow that the elite skiers carve down is just an honor and a privilege,’ Vanessa-Mae said.… Vanessa-Mae skied upright for most of the rainy course before crouching into the tuck position for the final gates.… Vanessa-Mae was born in Singapore and raised in Britain, but is at the Olympics as one of two athletes on Thailand’s team. She’s competing as Vanessa Vanakorn, using the surname of her Thai father.… ‘I made (a) pledge that I’m going to make a big donation to charity, because I support animal charities. So my main purpose for being here was … to improve my skiing in a very short amount of time and to help some animals out there.’ ”
Posted February 19, 2014
