BelgianBoy Posted January 20, 2014 Report Share Posted January 20, 2014 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/winter-olympics/10583271/Winter-Olympics-2014-violinist-Vanessa-Mae-to-ski-for-Thailand-at-the-Sochi-Games.html Vanessa-Mae, the violinist, is to put her musical career on ice after being selected to ski for Thailand in the Winter Olympics. Mae, who has skied since childhood, will be competing as Vanessa Vanakorn using her Thai father’s surname. Her manager told the BBC that she made the team “by a whiskerâ€. She has been training since 2010, when she told The Telegraph: “I am taking a plunge. It has been my dream, and I am hoping people will accept I just want to give it my best.†Under current Olympic qualification rules, countries with no skier ranked in the world’s top 500 may send one man and one woman to the Games, to compete in slalom and giant slalom. "Vanessa-Mae has unofficially qualified for the Olympic Games. That I could say to you," said Marko Rudolf, a Slovenian masters skier with links to the committee that organised the races. Vanessa, had to compete in at least five internationally recognised events in order to qualify for several slalom races at the Games next month. "People are surprised when they see me skiing," she said. "But it has been my dream to be a ski bum since I was 14. This is something I am determined to do. I wanted to compete for Thailand because there is a part of me which I have never celebrated - being Thai. "I have no delusions about a podium or even being in the top 100 in the world," she said. She is only the second Thai to compete at a Winter Olympics. Vanessa, whose full name is Vanessa-Mae Vanakorn Nicholson was born in Singapore to a Chinese mother and a Thai father but was brought up in the UK when her mother remarried a Briton. She is a British citizen but she also has a Thai passport. Vanessa started skiing aged four but her violin playing took precedence. She sold 10 million albums and was nicknamed 'Teeny Paganini’ when, at just eight, she became the youngest pupil at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing. At 13, she was the youngest soloist to record both Beethoven and Tchaikovsky concertos. “I started skiing around the same time as I began playing the piano, at around four, before moving to the violin at five,†she said. “And I’m lucky that having begun my musical career so young, it’s rather wonderful that I can now focus on my hobby. Not that I’m putting my day job on hold. "Music will always be my greatest passion. There are still the concerts. To be honest, that became a treadmill. The endless touring, the promotions. By the time I got to 20, I was no longer enjoying it.†Last year she announced she was taking a year off her music to qualify for the games. But she has previously said that she intends to return to music. "Living my dream of being a ski bum is great but the best job in the world is being on stage, making music." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WorldFun Posted January 20, 2014 Report Share Posted January 20, 2014 so being chinese/singaporean/thai/UK makes her an excellent skier by default i mean the traditions of UK in skiing are awesome not to mention sillypore had she only been 10% danish to boot that would have made her a top seed automatically anyways go have fun as a 'ski bum' whatever that infers? I was a ski bum for 5 months in val'd'isere, but that didnt make me one bit olympic or violinistic bts she looks not bad happy ski fuck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huumlaar Posted January 20, 2014 Report Share Posted January 20, 2014 Hey don;t forget Eddie the Eagle! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted January 20, 2014 Report Share Posted January 20, 2014 The government years ago gave her Thai citizenship because she was famous. "To date, only one person, Prawat Nagvajara, has represented Thailand at the Winter Olympics. Although they have had many winter sport athletes qualify for their respective sports, the NOC has chosen not to send them at this time." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thailand_at_the_Olympics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radioman Posted January 20, 2014 Report Share Posted January 20, 2014 The government years ago gave her Thai citizenship because she was famous. Okay, I don't get this. I know things way back were different but from all I've been told the situation today is such that if a person has a mother or father who was a Thai then that person is automagically a Thai. No matter if they proclaim themselves non-Thai, Thai law will always consider them Thai and not deny them their rights as a Thai (caveat: I think there are some very very special circumstances whereby Thai nationality may be revoked). There may be a process of registration, if that was not done at birth but nonetheless a Thai is a Thai, always. I believe that the UK has similar protections for it's nationals and that these facts make the whole question of dual citizenship somewhat redundant in the case of Thai/UK folk. I further understand that some countries, Singapore included, allow their citizens to rescind nationality. Since her father, so it's stated, was Thai, why would she not be eligible to be Thai. Actually I think he was a Brit of Thai descent so presuming his mother or/faher were Thai then I think it follows he can pass on his nationality. I believe UK limits automagic entitlement at granchillun, not sure about Thailand. Just curious since it might in due curse(sic) affect my kids. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BelgianBoy Posted January 20, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2014 automagically nice word Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coss Posted January 20, 2014 Report Share Posted January 20, 2014 "There may be a process of registration, if that was not done at birth but nonetheless a Thai is a Thai, always." Register at birth, then kid is Thai. Even if born somewhere else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted January 21, 2014 Report Share Posted January 21, 2014 But I don't think she was registered as Thai at birth. If memory serves me, the Thai government suggested she do so after she'd become well known. Supposedly, Tiger Woods was approached, but he wasn't interested. That is one of the reasons Thais don't take to him that much. He can't speak Thai and has shown no interest in the country. I remember when Kasetart University decided to award an honorary PhD to Tiger. He couldn't even be bothered to go to the university to receive it, so they had to give it to him in his hotel room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted January 21, 2014 Report Share Posted January 21, 2014 Winkipedia ... "Vanessa-Mae was born in Singapore to Vorapong Vanakorn, an English hotelier of Thai ancestry who lives in Singapore, and Pamela Soei Luang Tan, a Chinese lawyer and semi-professional concert pianist. After her parents separated, her mother married Graham Nicholson, a British attorney who adopted Vanessa-Mae, and the family moved to England when Vanessa-Mae was four years old. She grew up in London and holds British citizenship." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radioman Posted January 21, 2014 Report Share Posted January 21, 2014 There is/was a Mr Vorapong Vanakorn, General Manager at the Dusit Island Resort, Chiang Rai. As an English hotelier, as described by Winkipedia, I take it he worked for an English hotel group. Reading the journalism speak it's hard to say what he really did back then, doorman maybe? It should not be to surprising that she has Thai nationality. I would presume her British citizenship must stem from her step father, who legally adopted her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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