Writing the Pine

Especially in the Olympics.  Especially in figure skating where one mistake can drop you from first to fourth faster than you can say Lysacek.  Make fun of me all you want but I’m looking forward to watching ladies figure skating tonight and Thursday night.  Why?  Because my boo and fellow Korean Yu-Na Kim (pronounced Yun-Ah) is the favorite entering the competition.  As a matter of fact, no Korean has been so heavily favored at anything since I was in the 7th grade Math Olympiads.  According to betus.com, her line is at -180.  Next is Japan’s Mao Asada at +350.  Kim is the defending World Champion and has won 12 of the last 16 major competitions she’s entered.  She’s a star on and off the ice where she makes an estimated $8 million annually in endorsements, as much as Shaun White.  Products using Kim’s name go flying off the shelves in Korea, though I’m not sure if that has to do with Kim’s star power or the obsessive nature of Koreans.  Probably both.  Nike endorses her for cryin’ out loud and we all know Nike only goes for the best.  (Her latest Nike ad, if you could read Korean, is pretty good.  Scroll down to see it.  Nike comes through yet again with another great commercial, recent MVPuppets spots notwithstanding.)  But that just adds to the pressure for her.  Like I said, Koreans are star-obsessed but they also rival any other nation when it comes to supporting their team or athlete.  Just look at the 2002 World Cup or any of the World Baseball Classics.  It’s quite possible that literally every single Korean in the entire world will be watching her skate and she knows it.  She also knows they’re all expecting her to win the gold medal too.  She’s expecting to win the gold.  It’s the Olympics though.  Expectations aren’t always met.  You never know.  Just ask Evgeni Plushenko.  Or the two Koreans who crashed into each other in the 1500M short-track final causing a friend of mine to text me “Haha South Korea sucks balls!!!!”  (The shame wouldn’t even let me be mad at him.)  So while it may seem inevitable that Yu-Na Kim will take the top spot on that podium Thursday night, I know better than to put my money on a “sure thing” (DAMN YOU SHANNON BROWN).  I’ll be rooting for her though.  I just hope I’m not jinxing her by writing this.