#amateur athlete in Korea

[thewickedbohemian]

As apparently there used to be art events in the Olympics before they dropped them due to the now-lifted amateur restriction

No, I'm not just asking because I'm a nerd who'd need magic like in that one Olympics-related poll about which sport you'd do if you were magically granted the ability to be Olympic-level in it to be good in any form of athletic competition

I'm asking because I'm an art nerd who thinks it would be cool for those to return even if I couldn't compete (though if there was any kind of Olympic-level poetry competition I'm not saying I'd be at that level but if I worked at it I think I could at least make trials (whatever that'd look like for poetry) with a lot of practice) and would help arts be recognized as much as sports

And no, if there was any sort of Eurovision-esque music performance event in whatever art events would be added, the US wouldn't completely sweep as even just based off foreign artists I've listened to that are relatively popular I can think of artists from at least Great Britain, Ireland, Canada, Australia, South Korea, Mexico and Sweden that could stand a chance

[magdasabs]

My Korean coworker was telling me about a reality show where they train a bunch of retired athletes from other sports to play in an amateur League in Korea and follow their progression. And there's an episode with ji on it and it's from right after she left Chelsea and she almost teared up talking about Millie and Emma when they asked her 🥺 so cute I miss her at Chelsea.

aw that sounds so cute 🥺 I miss ji ji

[futuristicpaintercat]

The Explosive Growth of the eSports Industry: The Rise of Competitive Gaming

Over the past decade, the eSports industry has seen immense growth in popularity and viewership. What started as a niche hobby for hardcore gamers has exploded into a billion-dollar global industry. Major tournament championships now attract millions of viewers online and thousands of LAN attendees. Tournament prize pools rival and sometimes surpass traditional sports events. In 2020 alone, global revenues reached over $1 billion for the first time. This growth shows no signs of slowing down as gaming and it continue penetrating mainstream culture. The Rising Star Players and Teams At the center of competitive gaming are the star players and elite professional teams. Those at the top can now make millions of dollars per year through salaries, tournament winnings, sponsorships and endorsements. Just like traditional sports superstars, the best Esports athletes achieve celebrity status with huge social media followings. Leading teams like Team Liquid, T1, and G2 Esports have valuations exceeding $200 million as major brands back top rosters. Its players are now viewed as serious athletes who train for countless hours perfecting their skills. The commitment levels of pros are on par with other competitive disciplines. Increasing Corporate Sponsorships and Events As it gain wider recognition, blue-chip companies are investing heavily through sponsorships and partnership deals. Major tournaments now feature activations from Fortune 500 brands. For example, at League of Legends Worlds 2020, sponsors featured household names like Mastercard, Alienware and State Farm. They see its marketing as an effective youth-oriented channel. Live event spectacles are also rising as companies leverage it to engage audiences. Intel sponsors premier stadium event Extreme Masters with tens of thousands of LAN attendees. Similarly, League of Legends Champions Korea averages over 10,000 live viewers per match at Seoul's Jamsil Stadium. Esports' affinity with online and digital lifestyle also meshes well with technology sponsors. Automakers are also entering the space seeing parallels with motorsports audiences. Future: Continued Expansion and Evolution All forecasts point to sustained long-term growth of competitive gaming. The arrival of PlayStation, Xbox and Switch consoles in living rooms fueled explosive casual play. Those players are now the core demographic driving esports interest and viewership. By 2023, global revenues could near $3 billion according to some estimates as broadcast deals and sponsorship rise. Existing franchised leagues like the LEC and LCS will continue minting millions of fans. Meanwhile, new titles like Fortnite and Valorant also cultivate sizable infrastructures that could rival current giants like League and Overwatch. Audience demand is spurring investment as the industry creates structured ecosystems bringing amateur and pro levels closer together. With esports firmly entrenched in youth culture, its continued evolution of tournaments, teams and careers seems inevitable. After over 20 years of grassroots progress, competitive gaming has solidified as an integral part of modern entertainment.

Get More Insights on Esports

About Author:

Ravina Pandya, Content Writer, has a strong foothold in the market research industry. She specializes in writing well-researched articles from different industries, including food and beverages, information and technology, healthcare, chemical and materials, etc. (https://www.linkedin.com/in/ravina-pandya-1a3984191)

[themarketinsights]

Sports Apparel Online Retailing Market Giants Spending Is Going To Boom

Latest released the research study on Global Sports Apparel Online Retailing Market, offers a detailed overview of the factors influencing the global business scope. Sports Apparel Online Retailing Market research report shows the latest market insights, current situation analysis with upcoming trends and breakdown of the products and services. The report provides key statistics on the market status, size, share, growth factors of the Sports Apparel Online Retailing The study covers emerging player’s data, including: competitive landscape, sales, revenue and global market share of top manufacturers are Nike (United States), Adidas (Germany), Puma (Germany), Under Armour (United States), New Balance (United States), Lululemon Athletica (Canada), Asics (Japan), Columbia Sportswear. (United States), Fila (South Korea), Authentic Brands (United States)

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Sports Apparel Online Retailing Market Definition:

The sports apparel market includes manufacturing of ready-to-wear apparel and custom apparel from which types of apparel are women’s wear, men’s wear and kids wear. The different types of fibres are polyester, cotton and others which are used for manufacturing. E-commerce growth has shown a positive impact on this market and also latest health conscious mind-set is showing great opportunities. The technological advancements and smart apparel are talk of the town and raising more awareness and interest for younger generations. Major factors which are challenging in this market are different government regulations and also the climate change due to different manufacturing techniques the sustainability goals which are set by different countries are effecting sports apparel manufacturers.

Market Trend:

Rising adoption of smarts footwear.

People looking for more comfort in terms of sportswear has given rise to leisure sportswear.

Market Drivers:

Rising number of female participation is driving the growth of sports apparel market.

Easy convenience of internet and better E-commerce services with better offers are major contributors for growth.

Market Opportunities:

Increase in health conscious mind-sets of people and many people adopting gym or yoga for fitness is an opportunity for growth.

The Global Sports Apparel Online Retailing Market segments and Market Data Break Down are illuminated below:

by Type (Amateur sports, Professional Athlete), Application (Professional Athletic, Amateur Sports), Categories (Pants, Shorts, Track suit, Shoes, Other), Material (Cotton, Polyester, Spandex, Polypropylene, Wool blend), End User (Men, Women, Children)

Region Included are: North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Oceania, South America, Middle East & Africa

Country Level Break-Up: United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, South Africa, Nigeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Germany, United Kingdom (UK), the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Austria, Turkey, Russia, France, Poland, Israel, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, China, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore, India, Australia and New Zealand etc.

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Strategic Points Covered in Table of Content of Global Sports Apparel Online Retailing Market:

Chapter 1: Introduction, market driving force product Objective of Study and Research Scope the Sports Apparel Online Retailing market

Chapter 2: Exclusive Summary – the basic information of the Sports Apparel Online Retailing Market.

Chapter 3: Displayingthe Market Dynamics- Drivers, Trends and Challenges of the Sports Apparel Online Retailing

Chapter 4: Presenting the Sports Apparel Online Retailing Market Factor Analysis Porters Five Forces, Supply/Value Chain, PESTEL analysis, Market Entropy, Patent/Trademark Analysis.

Chapter 5: Displaying market size by Type, End User and Region 2015-2020

Chapter 6: Evaluating the leading manufacturers of the Sports Apparel Online Retailing market which consists of its Competitive Landscape, Peer Group Analysis, BCG Matrix & Company Profile

Chapter 7: To evaluate the market by segments, by countries and by manufacturers with revenue share and sales by key countries (2021-2026).

Chapter 8 & 9: Displaying the Appendix, Methodology and Data Source

Finally, Sports Apparel Online Retailing Market is a valuable source of guidance for individuals and companies in decision framework.

Data Sources & Methodology The primary sources involves the industry experts from the Global Sports Apparel Online Retailing Market including the management organizations, processing organizations, analytics service providers of the industry’s value chain. All primary sources were interviewed to gather and authenticate qualitative & quantitative information and determine the future prospects.

In the extensive primary research process undertaken for this study, the primary sources – Postal Surveys, telephone, Online & Face-to-Face Survey were considered to obtain and verify both qualitative and quantitative aspects of this research study. When it comes to secondary sources Company's Annual reports, press Releases, Websites, Investor Presentation, Conference Call transcripts, Webinar, Journals, Regulators, National Customs and Industry Associations were given primary weight-age.

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[toto0000000]

Otani dropped his head in six consecutive losses in the worst summer shock

Otani dropped his head in six consecutive losses in the worst summer shock

I have nothing to say. I'll work hard tomorrow and end the losing streak."

Whether it is Korea or the United States, there is little difference in how the head coach, who has been in a long-term losing streak, feels after the game.

The LA Angels fell into a swamp of six consecutive losses. It is the record for the most consecutive losses this season. The Angels knelt 2-3 after extra time in a home game against the Seattle Mariners at Angel Stadium on the 7th (Korea Standard Time). The Angels, who have lost six games since the Atlanta Braves match on the 2nd, marked 56 wins and 57 losses, falling below 50% in 20 days since the 18th of last month (47 wins and 48 losses).

The Angels, ranked fourth in the American League (AL) West, widened their gap with the Toronto Blue Jays, ranked third in the wild card, to seven games. Toronto, the target that the Angels have to catch up with, beat the Boston Red Sox 13-1 to win three consecutive games.

Coincidentally, he has not won any of the six games since the trade deadline on the 2nd. The Angels strengthened big players such as starting pitcher Lucas Giolito, setup man Reynaldo Lopez, first baseman CJ Cron and outfielder Randall Grichick through trades with the Chicago White Sox and Colorado Rockies in late July.

However, he suffered three consecutive rouging series in 10 games since then, and fell sharply to 2 wins and 8 losses. It's also shocking that Seattle, another wild-card rival, had a four-game sweep at home.

Considering Toronto's winning percentage (0.558) as a cut-line to the playoffs, the Angels must win 34 games, or 0.694 in the remaining 49 games. It is a miracle that a team with a 50% winning rate will immediately increase its winning rate to nearly 70%.

During his six-game losing streak, the Angels had a team batting average of 0.213, a team OPS of 0.606, a 3.33 points average, and a team ERA of 4.43. During the same period, the average score is 12th in the AL and the team's average ERA is 11th in the league. They are all struggling in pitching and hitting.

Angels manager Phil Nevin said after the game, "I'll wake up tomorrow, come out on the field, train hard, and play," adding, "I know everyone thinks we're done." I also know that they excluded us (from the playoff contenders). Good. We have 26 players and staff. They know what we're in right now. We also know what's ahead of us," he said. It's a message that I don't have much to say.

In other words, the Angels, who dreamed of autumn baseball for the first time in nine years since 2014, faced the worst scenario. If the team fails to make the playoffs this year and misses Otani after the season, the Angels will have no choice but to rush to reorganize the team.

The Athletics columnist Jim Borden said, "The Angels will regret not trading Otani. "It is much more difficult to raise players selected as amateur draft picks as big leaguers than to receive and nurture promising players from other teams," he pointed out. In other words, rather than losing Otani in the FA market and receiving one draft nomination ticket next year, he should have secured a number of promising players this time. As the playoff hopes fade, Otani's willingness to transfer will inevitably increase.

Ohtani recorded one hit, one run, and two strikeouts in four at-bats. Atlanta Braves Matt Olson hit his 39th home run of the season against the Chicago Cubs, closely chasing Otani by one. As the dream of autumn baseball is moving away, the home run title is also on the way to be taken away

[esglatestmarketnews]

Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) Devices—a deep-dive on How Athletics Trend Redefines Digital Health

Athletes have exhibited immense traction in tracking glucose levels continuously. So much so that CGM technology has become sought-after to see how their training and food influence their blood glucose levels all the time. The advanced CGM devices enable consumers to make diet and training decisions to help boost their performance. There have been instances in the past of the National Football League (NFL) using CGM devices. Some well-established brands, such as Abbott (Libre Sense), Supersapiens and Nutrisense, have furthered their penetration to tap into the global market. 

Sports and fitness enthusiasts have joined the bandwagon to enhance their fitness performance. It is worth mentioning that CGM is less invasive and some devices can be connected to Bluetooth, making the product highly popular among amateur and professional athletes. Grand View Research is gearing up to add OTC CGM devices used in non-diabetes applications and their impact on the blood glucose monitoring device market in its repository. The final report, coupled with the database, will emphasize the following dynamics:

• Opportunities for CGM manufacturers and analytics service providers

• Trends that can influence the prospect and application of CGM devices in fitness enthusiasts and diabetic patients.

• Insights on Medicare and Medicaid coverage.

• CGMs pricing among athletes and patients.

Get your copy or request a free sample of the report “A Study On New Vertical Growth Opportunities for Continuous Glucose Monitoring Devices,” compiled and published by Grand View Research. 

Vertical Growth Opportunities for CGM Devices Report Scope

Patient Demographics

Total Population

People with diabetes

People with undiagnosed diabetes

Deaths attributable to diabetes

Sport enthusiasts

Number of athletes

Pricing

Pricing for CGMs in diabetic patients vs Athletes

Reimbursement Differences

Coverage for Medicare and Medicaid

Regions

North America

U.S.

Canada

Europe

UK

Germany

France

Italy

Spain

Denmark

Sweden

Norway

Asia Pacific

Japan

China

India

Australia

Thailand

South Korea

Latin America

Brazil

Mexico

Argentina

MEA

South Africa

Saudi Arabia

UAE

Kuwait

Get more insights from our in-depth market intelligence report “Continuous Glucose Monitoring Devices Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Component (Transmitters, Sensors, Receivers), By End-use (Hospitals, Home Care), By Connectivity, By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2023 - 2030”

About Us

Grand View Research, Inc. is a market research and consulting company that provides off-the-shelf, customized research reports and consulting services. To help clients make informed business decisions, we offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a range of industries, from technology to chemicals, materials and energy. With a deep-seated understanding of varied business environments, Grand View Research provides strategic objective insights.

Find More information @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/info/trend-reports

[unboxedreflections]

SVEM ENTRY THREE - ESPORTS

Electronic sports, or eSports, have had one of the fastest rates of growth in recent years thanks to the development of online gaming and broadcasting technology. Esports are as the name suggests, are any sport really that is played electronically or by electronic means. Put simply, quite often esports and esports events are competitors playing video games or video game versions of certain sports against each other (Hamari & Sjöblom, 2017). Due to, most recently the COVID-19 pandemic, but also the rise of technology esports are enormously popular spectator events, as video and electronic games are more accessible and playable than ever before. This is especially true for eSports because the sporting event is computer-mediated, and the media content is delivered via computerised broadcasting (like internet streaming) according to Hamari & Sjöblom (2017). The evolution has been clear too but it didn’t just take off during the pandemic, in fact, it was booming almost a decade ago, as I found. In 2012, there were more than 430 professional eSports players or eSports athletes in South Korea alone, a significant eSports centre in Asia. Esports contests are taken more seriously than recreational playtime because eSports participants are viewed as athletes (both professional and amateur). (Seo, 2013).  The top 10 eSports games had prizes worth more than $18 million given out globally between 2010 and 2012. In 2013, it was predicted that more than 70 million people would watch eSports. Fans may watch eSports tournaments live-streamed on their mobile devices or in an arena (Wattanapisit et al., 2020). The eSports industry has been expanding gradually. From $655 million in 2017 to >$900 million in 2018, the worldwide eSports market—which includes sponsorships, advertising, media rights, game publisher feeds, tickets, and merchandise—increased by at least 37% (Trefis Team, 2018). The evolution has grown so much that interestingly, some believe esports events could be added to the Olympic Games in 2024 (BBC Staff Writers, 2017). The findings from the Trefis Team are accurate too as sports competitions such as Formula 1, which is one of the most professional and expensive sports in the world, has its own esports competition in which all ten teams compete using racing simulators (see below), with their own respective sponsors (PLC, 2023).

- Image is a screenshot from the F1 Esports website showing a racing sim in action (Formula One , 2023)

[scubalomo]

Icarus pose

To create the scientific framework necessary for such a global project, we formed the ICARUS initiative (the International Cooperation for Animal Research Using Space. Here, we propose a small-animal satellite tracking system that would enable the global monitoring of animals down to the size of the smallest birds, mammals (bats), marine life and eventually large insects. Tracking small animals is important because they are often part of evolutionary and ecological experiments, they provide important ecosystem services and they are of conservation concern or pose harm to human health. And yet the vast majority of animals is small. However, only large animals (greater than approximately 300 g) currently can be followed globally because of power and size constraints on the tracking devices. However just days after the PyeongChang Games ended, the International Olympic Committee lifted its ban on the Russian Olympic Committee even though the country is still non-compliant with the World Anti-Doping Agency, Deadline reports.Tracking animals over large temporal and spatial scales has revealed invaluable and spectacular biological information, particularly when the paths and fates of individuals can be monitored on a global scale. This meant Russia was unable to earn a position on the podium and unable to add to its medal cache. Russian athletes competed under a neutral flag in Pyeongchang last month-representing the Olympic Athletes from Russia in South Korea. Thanks largely in part to Fogel’s work , Russia was banned from the 2018 Winter Olympics. Yes, Icarus is responsible for the Olympic Russian Ban We won’t spoil all the juicy details (and surprises) for you, but as you can imagine this news had quite an influence on the 2018 Winter Olympics.Ĥ. Shortly after, the World Anti-Doping Association exposed the extent of Russia’s doping-including Rodchenkov and Vladimir Putin’s involvement in it all. Later, he’d replace their urine with the untainted smuggled samples since he ran the lab that handled Olympic testing, The New York Times reports. Rodchenkov says he’d mix three banned steroids with liquor for Russian athletes. Rodchenkov snuck Fogel’s urine through an airport-something he later admits was a technique Russia used to keep its Olympic athletes “clean” at the Sochi Winter Games in 2014, The Guardian reports. The Doping Documentary That Will Make You Lose Faith In Sports Read article Sensing a propitious opportunity, Fogel asked Rodchenkov to help him cheat the system-dope and dodge detection-to which Rodchenkov eagerly agreed. As if by fate, one introduced him to Russian scientist Grigory Rodchenkov, then-director of the Moscow Anti-Doping Centre. Naturally Fogel needed some experts to show him the ropes. He wanted to be a true muckraker by cruising through the competition (and his best time) and pass the urine tests all on film, The Guardian summarizes. Bryan Fogel struck filmmaker gold-on accidentįogel’s initial plan was to prove how easy it is to get away with doping by competing in a prestigious amateur race he’d done the year before-only now tackle it chemically enhanced. Fogel more or less trips into one of the biggest sport scandals the world has ever seen.ģ. “So I’m going, ‘Wait, what is wrong with the system?’ Not, ‘What is wrong with Lance?’”īut at the end of this documentary, Armstrong’s misdoings are overshadowed by more nefarious revelations. “Lance Armstrong had evaded 500 anti-doping controls clean,” Fogel told Seth Meyers in an interview on Late Night in summer 2017. It’s also the first time a Netflix Original has taken home a statuette for best documentary feature.īryan Fogel- Icarus filmmaker and recreational cyclist-began the documentary as an answer to Lance Armstrong’s scandalous career. Icarus is one of the few Oscar-winning movies you can screen on a lazy Sunday in bed. The 10 Best Dressed Guys at the 2018 Academy Awards Read article

[gwydionmisha]

We need to talk about the Treatment of Zhu Yi.

So here's the thing, in both the elite sports and the ballet world, people have been switching countries significantly longer than I've been alive.  It a thing that happens.  It's normal.  There are a lot of reasons for it.  sometimes, as during the Cold war, people outright defect(ed) because they think they will have a better life in the other country.  This is an extremely familiar narrative even to people who don't follow figure skating (or ballet, or certain other sports), but it's not the only reason people do this.

In figure skating, it's incredibly common for people who are good, but live in a country with a large number of good skaters to, you know, move somewhere where they have more opportunities.  People with duel citizenship will often pick the country with less competition for top slots because things like the Olympics max out a countries entries at three.  If there are say four or even five of you vying for a limited number of slots at say Worlds or the Olympics, maybe it's worth staying, but what if you have an option to grab the one spot some other country has instead of fighting your way into those limited slots?  

Keep in mind, a lot of those smaller countries very much want an elite skater to help build a program in their country and for the international prestige.  They will welcome a duel citizen with open arms.  Similarly, the child of emigres.  Some of them will actively recruit athletes who've signaled an interest in leaving despite a lack of ties.  (This happens in lots of Sports.  Remember that Belarusian runner who defected in a Japanese airport who got taken in by a third country?)  So if your country has no potential Olympians, or only very weak contenders, it really does make sense on both sides.  

Last I checked eight Russian figure skaters were expected at the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, five of them skating for other countries because the Russian women's single skate program is so incredibly dominant right now.  If you are in the top four or five, might as well go be the best woman's single skater in some other nearby country.

You also get good skaters from smaller countries moving to live somewhere else without changing citizenship to be where the best coaches are.  This is incredibly normal.  you also get pairs and dance skaters who end up deciding to partner with someone from another country, who have to change citizenship so they can skate together.  My point is, a lot of people live and train in one country and compete for another, or have moved between countries as they think is best for their development as skaters.

Would I want to pick China to switch to?  No.  Surveillance, genocide, concentration camps, rising anti-queer sentiment, etc., but I can see why the level of state support China gives their elite athletes might attract someone who was talented but not likely to get much support or exposure in the US.  It's not the choice I would likely make, but I can understand someone who did, especially someone with her background.  This really likely was her best option, possibly her only option besides skating here. Keep in mind, most athletes above a certain level have lived and dreamed and sacrificed most of their childhood and teen years to try to do this one thing very, very well.  It's easy for people who never were that kind of choice to judge that choice harshly.  I prefer exercising a little empathy.

Last winter Olympics, there was a Kazakhstani ladies single skater who was good enough to score two slots for her country.  There were not two women at the right level to fill those slots and there was a controversy, because the second best Kazakhstani lady figure skater came anyway instead of that slot to the next eligible person from another country.  and yes, it sucked that that other woman didn't get to go, but realistically, neither of these women were going to medal.  So picture for a second if you were an amateur Kazakhstani skater and you had a once in a lifetime chance to travel to Korea to skate on televisions all over the world wearing your tiara.  Realistically, I'd guess 99% of us would have been skating in our tiaras even if the world called us selfish.  It's nice to say, oh, you'd cede that slot, but no one offered you one.  I don't think any of us know we'd for sure say no.

Also, you know why Zhu Yi was skating for China in Beijing?  They literally had no woman single skater better than her.  No really.  When I heard China was going to the team event, I thought, "Huh.  Who's they get for the woman's single skate?"  Because I could think of anyone this cycle at that level to take the slot.  when I saw who it was, I was like, oh!  I vaguely remember her from pre-pandemic.  Which means she was good enough for me to have seen her and for to have made some sort of impression though not a strong one either way.  If China had a woman with a 60+ short, she'd have been in that slot.  Ask yourself seriously, in her place, given a chance for better coaching and a ticket to the Olympics, would you really say no?  Because I think a whole lot of armchair skate fans would say yes, even with all the stuff going on in China.  

And then there is the extreme cyber bullying which makes me furious.  She was clearly doing her best in the short.  I have been listening to Canadian skate commentators every year since I moved up here in '98 and I have never heard them as quietly furious as they were during the long program at the harm people on social media heave done to this young woman.  She is nineteen.  A teenager.  her whole life has been about trying to do this one thing she loved.  She's not a murderer, like Kyle Rittenhouse, or a monster.  She is a teenager who wanted to skate more than anything in the world and now hate is pouring down on her from all sides with no thought at all to her humanity or her youth.  The cruelty of it.  I just have no fucking words.

Of course she couldn't skate well under those conditions.  Could you?  Could anyone?

I don't know her.  I'll never meet her, but oh do I have empathy for her, because this is a terrible thing for anyone to have done to them, especially a young woman with all the pressures that the world piles on young women just in general.

Fuckssake, can we think before we pile on?  Expend a little empathy like the Canadian Skate commentators, instead of being the gears of hate grinding up young athletes trying to do their best in one of the most high pressure situations is possible for an athlete to be in.

[dollypardonne]

her fate has been sealed.

name by birth: minako fukui (福井 美奈子一 fukui minako); fukui meaning "fortunate" or "well blessed" & 美 (mi) meaning "beautiful", 奈 (na), a phonetic character, and 子 (ko) meaning "child" nickname(s): mina, nako, protein junkie, nana (by close friends) phantom thief code name: joker species: human zodiac: aries blood type: a birthdate: april 19, 1995 ethnicity: filipino-japanese nationality: japanese (second generation immigrant) hometown: setagaya-ku, tokyo, japan residence: sinchon-dong, seodaemun-gu, seoul, south korea living arrangement: semi-willingly house sharing with ? occupation: part time voice actor (company and projects undisclosed), postgraduate student at yonsei university, majoring in political science - formerly an amateur boxer in japan languages: japanese and korean (fluent), english (conversational) - she can mimic 21-43 different accents of several languages or dialects, there are flaws to this which is mostly over-exaggeration and the tendency to stereotype while doing certain ones but she continues to practice them in her spare time affiliations: the phantom thieves (leader) sexual orientation: bisexual, with a strong lean for feminine-presenting individuals romantic orientation: grey-romantic marital status: single family:

father - fukui tatsuo (listed as deceased but remains were never found; missing/unknown) mother - dalisay bagatsing, later adopted the name 'sara' of the same meaning to assimilate (deceased) younger brother - fukui daiki (deceased) pet cat named mona :)

hair: jet black, wears it short (currently above her chin), ocassionally accents her dark hair with dyed streaks eyes: dark brown height: 165cm weight: 60kgs build: lean and defined, slightly athletic

has two ear piercings, one on each. often wears black leather gloves to conceal the scar on her palm, without it her hands would be hidden in her pockets, otherwise she feels 'naked' (she has a set with open fingers and some touch screen gloves) even in the summer, generally wears mostly neutral colored clothes; anything with pockets. mannerisms include biting on end tip of pens, her nails, fingers and lips, doing tricks with her tongue, scratching her temple (when nervous, annoyed, shy, embarrassed).

minako is, for the most part, serious and determined. the cliched ambiguity in her expression obscures more than just a chic personality. at first glance, she appears quiet and unassuming. this behavior is a profound ruse that hides the heart of a rebellious trickster. she is extremely resistant to rigid and dogmatic forms of control-based authority and order.

she has an aggressive side that she demonstrates when necessary. with the goal of protecting her family from harm, she learned how to fight and she kept on working to get stronger. while going through traumatic experiences and several low points in life, she had grown prone to violent behavior. this is depicted by her impulsive belligerence, thus being easily labeled a delinquent. she remains unmoved even at a gunpoint. she has extremely neutral viewpoints on life and death, and is uncaring of either.

living by herself for majority of her years, she was accustomed to a life of solitude. she can be impatient. she doesn't like waiting for others and she prefers doing everything her way. she can be expected to always choose her own path. she sometimes finds herself having trouble communicating with others because of her unwillingness to compromise but her nonchalant side also lets others influence her in some way. she doesn't like disclosing information about herself and isn't a person that anyone can easily get to know past surface level.

when she was younger, she had been subtly harassed by female upperclassmen in middle school to high school without knowing the real reason as to why. her naivety owed by being unaware of the fanbase of female students who often followed her around school had her conspicuously uninterested with their affairs. she only found them to be distasteful.

in terms of romance, she has had a few bad experiences, enough to change her perception on the concept of love in general. the subject itself is a delicate one. even the slightest implication of it gets her easily irritated. however, a softer side of her appears in front of the few people she cares for. people of the sort are witness to her unusual charms, namely her dry humor, and her flair for showing off and making dramatic decisions.

self-confidence is both a strength and a weakness for her; this trait leaning more towards arrogance. she has the tendency to overestimate her ideas, sometimes leading her to numerous dangers. she possesses a spirit of a gambler, always taking risks in the face of doubt. her assertive nature and free heart ensures that she will always strive to reform the corrupt.

face-claim: elaiza ikeda

[empowertutorials]

"Boxer, mother, five-time world champion and habitual destroyer of stereotypes."That’s Mary Kom !!!! Mary Kom is, without doubt, one of the most fascinating athletes on the planet. Born in a poor region of India, it looked likely that she would end up working the land with her family. But – overcoming the objections from her family – she moved to the city, became a boxer after persuading a local coach to take her on, and worked her way up to becoming a champion. She became the first Indian female boxer to win a gold medal in the Asian Games in 2014 at Incheon, South Korea and is the first Indian female boxer to win gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. She is also the only boxer to become Asian Amateur Boxing Champion for a record six times. The greatest achievement was she opened an opportunity for boxing as a sport for the Indian women. A true pathbreaker with great grit and guts!!!

#WorldOfMaths #WorldOfScience #Empower_Tutorials #EmpowerTutorials

[virtchandmoir]

Tessa Virtue steps into the style spotlight for new 'uplifting' fashion campaign

Canadian Olympian talks personal style, women supporting women — and what's next for her off the ice.

August 30, 2019

From left: Ashley Callingbull, Karine Vanasse and Tessa Virtue are featured in a new campaign for Canadian retailer RW&CO.  HANDOUT/RW&CO.

Growing up, Tessa Virtue faced no shortage of strong female role models.

“I was so lucky. I grew up with an incredibly strong grandmother, mother and sister,” Virtue says. “All three, independent, fierce, clever women who were hard workers, had goals and visions for themselves, and were really ambitious.”

“And, they didn’t apologize for those goals.”

The trio’s individual and combined influence left a Virtue with a sense of “limitless,” she recalls.

“I really believed that I could do or be anything,” she says with a smile.

While she didn’t pause to think much on it then, she’s now keenly aware of the fact that her inspirational upbringing, surrounded by a network of strong women who promoted the underlying message of “yes, you can!”, wasn’t always the case for other young girls.

“I didn’t realize that not everyone felt that way. That, not everyone felt that privilege,” she says.

The realization has been a contributing factor to the increased visibility of Virtue in media and advertisements in recent years — primarily those following the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics where she and ice-dancing partner Scott Moir stole the spotlight for their riveting routines — that allows fans and followers a glimpse into Virtue’s life that goes beyond her on-ice achievements.

“For whatever reasons, after the Pyeongchang games, there was a different awareness of both Scott and me … but it provided so many unique opportunities. And, hopefully I can have some kind of impact for young girls to look up to,” she says humbly. “I feel very privileged to be able to be considered any kind of role model.”

Olympic ice dance gold medallists Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of Canada hold up the Canadian flag after their winning performance at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games on Tuesday in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea. PAUL CHIASSON / CANADIAN PRESS

Her visibility on social media platforms such as Instagram, where she boasts a following of 364,000 and counting on her account @tessavirtue17, is one area where she works to constructively (and carefully) share her struggles and successes, in the hopes of leaving a positive impression on those who may happen to scroll by.

“I’m conscious of that. And I try to do that in a way that is authentic,” she says of fully realizing the scope of her role via social media and beyond. “I think, often, about how a nine-year-old girl would feel if she were to scroll through my Instagram. And, what messaging I’m sending, both objectively and subjectively. I think, ‘What kind of role model am I?’”

Focusing on the type of content she shares — positive messages and happy shots of herself attending events or with friends and family —  has kept her somewhat safeguarded from the rampant online trolling that plagues many celebrities online. And, when she does face negativity, she doesn’t allow herself to get too caught up in it.

“You put yourself out there and I think there is always vulnerability with that,” she says. “Whether that’s standing at centre ice and waiting for the music to start, or posting something on social media for everyone to criticize, you just have to hope that the good outweighs the bad.”

Her ambition to present a positive role model to young girls and women led her to a recent collaboration with the Montreal-based fashion brand RW&CO. The campaign, which sees her featured alongside Canadian actress Karine Vanasse and First Nations activist Ashley Callingbull, the first Indigenous woman to be crowned Mrs. Universe, aims to promote “powerhouse” working women, in various stages of their careers.

“The campaign is so in line with my messaging and the things that I’m trying to accomplish now, outside of sport,” Virtue says. “And it’s something that I can relate too, also.”

Virtue hopes people pick up on the collaborative, supportive air of the campaign stars and feel empowered to introduce that outlook into their own lives.

“The culture now of this competition that’s ingrained in us, to pit women against other women, and this unrealistic standard that we’re all held to — all these issues are pervasive,” she says. “We can only be stronger for women when we support one another.”

Speaking on a hot, sunny day in July at a studio space in Montreal during a brief break in shooting images for the campaign (with her mom looking on in support), Virtue reflected on how, at 30 years old, she’s reached a point in her life where she’s “transitioning,” personally and professionally.

“And I’m looking to other women to support and uplift me,” she says of the changes. “So, I think it’s really neat that (RW&CO. is) putting together, really, a movement to incorporate so many things. And, they’re not just talking the talk.”

To mark the release, the retailer will be running a contest for Canadians to nominate an inspiring woman in their lives. The winner will receive a donation to the charity of her choice.

In addition to providing a visual representation of strong female role models, the partnership provided Virtue and her campaign co-stars with the opportunity to donate a portion of their fee to a cause of their choice. Callingbull directed her share toward a shelter for Indigenous women and children, while Vanasse chose a women’s shelter in Montreal.

Virtue, chose to promote another passionate platform, highlighting her efforts as an ambassador for the Canadian organization FitSpirit, which works to promote and support physical activity and athletics programs for young girls.

“It’s something that is so close to my heart,” she says of the role. “Obviously, I’ve reaped the benefits of sport and activity. But not many girls, as it turns out, even have the resources available to them to be physically active or to maintain that as they go through high school. So, FitSpirit is connecting with schools and giving that accessibility to young girls and youth at a time when they might otherwise drop out our prioritize other things.”

“It’s an opportunity to be active and connect with other girls — and to realize the power that those lessons and the sense of building self confidence and self worth that will carry forward for them.”

Recalling a recent visit to a school with FitSpirit where she met with young girls in the program, she recalls, with evident pleasure, sharing her enthusiasm for athletics with the girls — and how she took a little bit of something away from the visit for herself, too.

“They were so curious and it’s so obvious that they’re capable of taking over the world,” she says of the energetic assemblage of youths. Needless to say, it left her feeling inspired.

“When we realize the powerhouse of that sisterhood and the camaraderie among women — there’s no stopping us,” she says.

Flash fashion: Style talks with Tessa Virtue

Canadian Olympian Tessa Virtue may be known more for her on-ice moves than her off-ice style — but, these days, the 30-year-old athlete and ambassador is putting a lot more emphasis on what she wears.

“I lived in either sweatpants or athletic wear,” she says with a laugh of her go-to uniform during her training days. “I was really of two extremes, which plays to my personality as a bit of an extremist. I was either in full-on workout wear or black tie. So, I didn’t have that middle range.”

But, now, as she ventures confidently into her next career adventures that see her stepping away from amateur sport, she says she’s having fun exploring her personal style as she spends more time in the “corporate sphere” and much less time on the ice.

“It has definitely evolved over time,” she says of her fashion sense. “Now, I would say my personal style is pretty classic and refined — with a bit of a twist. I like to have a bit of an edge to every outfit.”

Virtue recently took time away from her busy schedule to dish four tidbits about her personal style. Here’s what she had to say:

On how she chooses her outfits: “I definitely dress based on my mood. I like accessorizing differently. Having classic, quality pieces and mixing in graphic tee, a headband, a pair of funky boots or a belt and changing the outfit entirely.”

On here greatest style influence: “My mom has always shopped for me. I’m so lucky that I have an in-house stylist.”

On her MVP (most valuable piece): “I love a good blazer. Whether it’s jeans, a T-shirt and a blazer, or a power suit, I think that would be my staple.”

On her most cherished item: “My grandmother’s necklace.”

—Windsor Star

[doux-amer]

I’ve been watching some episodes of 뭉쳐야 찬다 (”Let’s Play Soccer” on JTBC) with my parents and man, I missed watching Korean variety shows. I’m so lazy with watching TV, and it’s been almost a decade since I watched Korean shows with my parents. We used to rent videos from the Korean video store and watch variety shows as a treat on weekends. 

Anyway, it’s not surprising I’m hooked because lol, it’s about football/soccer/축구 (it’s about a group of entertainers and top athletes, both former and current, from a variety of sports backgrounds who come together as a team coached by the legendary Ahn Junghwan, he of the luscious locks and famous ring kiss celebration, to compete with amateur teams across Korea), but I love it because it’s a lot of fun and I didn’t realize we had so many sports legends. Wow. AND I LOVE THEM ALL. THEY’RE ALL SO ADORABLE!!!!! I LOVE THEM! I LOVE THE AJUSSHIS. I LOVE THE YOUNGER ATHLETES WHO ARE STILL COMPETING. <3 

But I also love seeing who they bring on as coaches and opposing teams. They brought on Ji Soyun (my parents were all starry-eyed over her, and SO WAS I. ALSO, YOHAN HUGGING HER....A TREE HUGGING A HOBBIT!!!!), the “Mister Trot” team, etc. etc. so it’s a good, fun mix between entertainment and learning about football, and the most recent episode featured the 2002 World Cup team and WOW. THE NOSTALGIA. Seriously, nothing has come close to that World Cup in terms of atmosphere. There was nothing like it. It was such a shock seeing them though because it’s been 18 years, and man....they’re middle-aged men asfjsalfjas. But I really enjoyed listening to the behind-the-scenes stories! Also, I didn’t realize/I forgot I apparently was lucky enough to watch Maldini play; I just don’t remember him at all which is a huge, hugeeee shame. Brain! What were you doing?! Idk, I guess I was busy imprinting on other players lkdjfdas.

[buzzdixonwriter]

Duty Now For The Future (part six)

Small and mobile

There’s a Venn diagram to be made of the overlap among --

The tiny house community

The nomad community

Homeless people living in cars

These are all reactions to a capitalism driven consumer economy:   Buy real estate!  Build big house!  Fill them full of stuff!  Buy more real estate!  Build bigger house!  Buy more stuff! (Go deeply into debt paying us high interest rates on the inflated prices of your purchases.)

Somewhere in that diagram -- more to the tiny house side of the equation -- sit those who make a conscious choice of “Hold!  Enough!” and take steps to reduce their footprint and baggage.

At the other end, people forced out of homes and apartments desperately trying to keep their lives together long enough to get a roof over their heads.

In the middle (and I think this is a huge overlap in the nomad community) are those who, faced with the prospect of losing their permanent residence, tell others (and let’s be honest, themselves) that they voluntarily made the choice to take up the nomad lifestyle.

Now there’s a fourth overlap to add to the diagram:

People who won’t / can’t afford to travel abroad.

Soon-ok and I are extremely fortunate that we got to take some trips to Europe over the last decade or so, as well as going together to Korea, plus a few trips to Hawaii.

We are -- and will remain -- extremely leery of traveling anywhere by air in the future (by train or bus, too).

Unless and until there’s a vaccine, we’re a little leery of cramming ourselves into a metal tube with strangers for hours on end, then traveling to crowded tourist spots.

Even before the coronavirus we’d discussed when we should stop traveling by air for our trips and start traveling by car or train.

We enjoy Canada and would be delighted to return there, and the US still offers many under visited regions and attractions we’d love to see.

With tourism and airline travel taking a massive hit -- one from which they will not speedily recover due to lack of consumer confidence and high unemployment -- more Americans will opt for domestic travel and trips, driving their own vehicles.

Vans and SUVs will remain a favored vehicle since they can be easily converted or adapted to self-sufficient long distance traveling and tourism.

Campgrounds and trailer / RV parks already exist; the large amount of underused / abandoned shopping mall space offers opportunities to provide similar services for small scale urban travelers who don’t want to sleep out in the wild under the stars but in the comfort and safety of their own van, on a parking lot patrolled and maintained well enough to be safe.

This is good news for the domestic auto industry and the various companies that support it.

It will also put enormous pressure on bringing the price of self-driving vehicles down low.  Insurance companies will offer lower premiums to folks and families who let the car do the driving, and that, coupled with the appeal of just being able to sit back and enjoy the scenery / watch a video / read a book / take a nap / get ring-tailed drunk, will push that market forward.

Eventually we’ll reach a tipping point where a lot of people and their families will see more sense and cents in living in a vehicle than owning a home, and then real estate will take another tumble.  (What about the children, you ask?  Remote learning; the Australians have been doing it successfully in the outback for generations).

It’s not for everybody, but it’s sure gonna be for a lot of people.

. . .

Sports are broken and need to get fixed

Captain Lou Albano, when asked if professional wrestling was fixed, famously answered, “It wasn’t broken.”

Sports now are broken.

(I want to differentiate between sports in the forms of athletics, as in team sports for students, neighborhood bowling leagues, city marathons, etc., and sports as a business where personalities and icons are marketed to fans and the revenues derive less from the gate and more from advertising and merchandising incomes; we’ll be discussing primarily the latter here.)

I’m surprised that with all the numerous sports games and simulations out there, ESPN or some other entity failed to see the potential of wholly digital sports, pitting classic era teams against one another in a competition decided purely by AI.

Seriously, for the average fan sitting in front of their TV at home, what separates a digital team from a real team?

The personalities?

Okay, fine, you can recruit and groom real life personalities for the fans to idolize, but then you can stage everything else safely (and less expensively) in the digital realm.

Don’t raise your eyebrow at me; this is essentially what professional wrestling does.

People really interested in sports for the grace and skill watch amateur competitions as well as professional ones.

Fans interested only in proving their tribe is superior to other tribes, not so much.

You can still keep national / regional / state / city chauvinism going through digital imagery.

Of course, it will be argued that the opportunities for fixing such an event are rampant.

So?

The chauvinist fans just want to win, they don’t care how.  

The Boston fans can view a streaming channel where their teams wins the playoffs all the time; the New York fans get their channel where they win, etc., etc., and of course, etc.

Amateur athletics will reman unfixed, of course (well, officially unfixed).  People will watch those because (a) children or relatives are playing or (b) they play themselves.

The (b) group will watch televized tennis and golf because those are sports they enjoy and they hope to pick up pointers.

The (a) group will go to games and meets because that’s what family does.

(By the way, expect track and field, golf, tennis, volleyball, and related sports to rise in popularity among students and other amateurs; they allow play while social distancing.)

. . .

Capitalism is fixed and needs to be broken

Capitalism works when it’s kept on a leash with a muzzle and we pick up after it when it poops on people’s lawns.

What we face now is rabid coyote capitalism.

A big hunk of the problem will be self correction as major corporations will face a rapidly changing future and divest themselves of everything they consider marginal.

That’s gonna be a lot of stuff.

Dominos falling now will topple other dominos we can only guess at, but rest assured, corporations do not flourish when dominos topple.

Another part will be the realization that despite almost a century of lies by the 1% and their alt-right / cryptofascist stooges, less government is not better government.

For all the claims that a free market economy could respond more nimbly to changing circumstances, we now face a brutal pandemic that could have been blunted and was blunted by nations with a better handle on their economies.

The response to the COVID-19 pandemic couldn’t be effectively mounted by a market based system for the brutally simple reason that there was no market for such a response before the pandemic occurred.

That’s the job of a government; to look ahead and anticipate and plan and prepare and at least have some coherent response to any number of threats that might suddenly arise.

In the past we had national governmental agencies that tracked pandemics and the spread of disease so as to minimize both their loss of life and the impact on the economy.

For all his sins and shortcomings, George W. Bush and his administration realize the threat pandemics posed and took great strides to organize America’s response so them should they occur.  Barack Obama built on that, organizing it even better, learning from mistakes made in earlier pandemics to make the response to the next one more efficient.

Donald Trump tore all that down in a fit of pique in order to pass the savings along to his billionaire donors.

It’s as if he closed down the fire department and then, when a five-alarm blaze broke out, asked his cronies to start designing smoke alarms.

A rising tide lifts all boats, but it drowns those who can’t get in one.

The other side of the COVID-19 pandemic will want a return to “normal” not “greatness”.

There is, of course, no genuine “normal” to return to.

What we can do is progress, move forward, make the next model of American society better.

A lot of people -- old white people, primarily -- aren’t going to like that.

COVID-19 may be trying to tell ya sumthin’, folks…

 ”I was born by a river, oh man, in this little old tent, oh Just like this river, I've been running ever since It's been a long, long time coming But I know, but I know, a change is gotta come Ooo yes it is” -- Otis Redding

 © Buzz Dixon

[monstaxdirtywonk]

Rock it, baby 🖤 @lostmyshame

So I saw Kihyun’s rock performance and omg that was something.

And it gave me an idea..

What do you think the reaction from MonstaX (all of them or just the members who you think suit this ask the most) would be to a tall (talk about 5’10 or even 5’11), slim, leaning towards athletic, hourglass figure biker girl being their makeup artist throughout one of their tours? Reserved, a bit sarcastic with a dark sense of humor, looking mysterious, wearing dark makeup, leather jackers, and high knee boota, owning a bike etc… Not rude or obnoxious, just distant at first but soft once she gets used to being around them.

I really like to imagine ‘out of the comfort zone’ scenarios but not anything too edgy to the point of it being cringeworthy. However the idea to them seeing someone being quite different from what they usually see girls being in the K-pop industry amuses me.

Despite my amateur ficwriter mind picturing so many cute different scenarios this could turn into, the more realistic reaction would probably be them being very… well, not scared but a bit nervous and slightly confused maybe? 😂 Especially if the girl is a foreigner they would probably be feel uneasy, thinking that she doesn’t like being there. And since I know Korean don’t really get sarcasm, oh boy… That could be awkward. Except probably for Changkyun. That boy gets it bless his heart 😂

So we always see scenarios where the guy is the ‘bad boy’ but what if the roles were reversed?

 I really thought of Changkyun as I was reading what you had to say. Imo Changkyun would fall for someone that isn’t pretty by social standards given in Korea how popular the girly/preppy look is. He finds confidence sexy and appreciates someone that does their own thing/style and does comfort with socially acceptable way of dressing. Edgy, grudgy or punk-ish style is his cup of tea. Sexy yet fashionable at the same time. He seems intrested in makeup , just like you. Plus, he is the most likely to date a foreigner.

Another one is Jooheon. In general the maknae line is more open to not girly kind of girls. Hoseok too. For the rest, I see them more into classy/cutesy girls. However they would all be pleasently shock to your sight. As it’s something they don’t see often, an ‘exotic’ look that gains attention.

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

New law in Brazil helps level playing field for women football players

Female football players from around the world are heading to France to battle for the Women’s World Cup.

They’re hoping the attention the contest brings will help level the playing field with their male counterparts. In Brazil, a new law is aimed at doing just that.

“Boys think they’re the only ones who can play football,” said Clara Helena. “So when we play with them they never want to pass the ball to us. Until they realize we can play as well as them or even better, and usually we play better.”

This former coach of the Brazilian women’s national team, now the head of the Santos Football Club, leads the training here. Emily Lima says the mandatory creation of women’s teams in Brazil’s Premier League — effective this year — was a good start, but it’s not enough to create real momentum for the sport.

The creation of new women’s teams has been welcomed as an important step in developing the sport, but in most cases these are amateur teams that do not pay full-time salaries. So while there may be more opportunities for women to play, there are very few avenues for them to become professional athletes.

Continue reading.

Just reminding y'all that the Women's World Cup starts tomorrow with France and South Korea 16h (Brasília time), and our girls will play with Jamaica on Sunday 10h30! Globo will broadcast Brazil's games and SporTV will broadcast all matches! Here's the full schedule ⚽✨

-Mod Nise da Silveira