| | | | | GAME
PLAN | | Holy salkow, Batman, Miki’s back! Yes, Japan’s very own Babe on Ice, Miki Ando, roared back to form in the opening event of the Grand Prix figure skating series, not only winning October’s Skate America competition in Connecticut, but overshadowing younger teen star Mao Asada, everybody’s current tip for greatness. Ando, of course, was panned after finishing a disappointing 15th at the Turin Olympics, but she’s lost a bit of chunkiness and taken her skating to a higher level; maybe now she will start to fulfill her promise. Next up on the calendar is the NHK Trophy from November 30 to December 3 in Nagano. Japan’s women skaters are hot right now. Catch them while you can. FV See sports listings for details.
| By
Fred Varcoe
Ahn Jung Hwan
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He's been called the "David
Beckham of Asia," but he's not Hidetoshi Nakata.
He's married to a former Miss Korea. His mother's
been jailed for fraud. He enraged Americans for a World Cup
goal celebration and got fired by his European club for scoring
the winning tally against Italy. He's a monumental
superstar in South Korea, and this year he'll be playing
his football for the champions of Japan, the Yokohama F. Marinos.
Curiously, the mania that attaches itself to Ahn Jung Hwan
is very low-key here, but during the 2002 World Cup, the frenzy
was astonishing. Perhaps the biggest moment of his life came
in the second round against Italy. It was a game the multi-talented
Italians were expected to win, but a combination of inspired
coaching from Guus Hiddink and rabid nationalism from 44 million
home fans were to steer South Korea to the semifinals. In
sudden-death extra time, Lee Young Pyo sent in a hopeful cross
from the left, and Ahn rose to challenge Italian icon and
team captain Paulo Maldini for the ball. It skidded off the
South Korean striker's head and bounced into the far
corner of the goal-a moment that will be frozen in
time for all Koreans who watched it. That moment propelled
Ahn to international fame, partly due to the goal but just
as much from the reaction of his club team's owner,
Perugia's Luciano Gaucci, who reportedly said, "I'm
not going to pay the salary of a guy who's been the
ruin of Italian football."
Ahn's previous goal in the World Cup had galvanized
his team just as much, and provoked equally angry reactions.
South Korea hadn't played particularly well against
the United States in Taegu and had fallen behind to a Clint
Mathis goal. Ahn popped up again to inspire his teammates,
but it was what he did after scoring the equalizer that enraged
Americans. Ahn ran over to the corner flag and started to
imitate a speedskater, and his teammates joined in the fun.
It probably didn't mean a lot to the American team,
but sports watchers and, more importantly, the 66,000 Koreans
in the crowd and the millions watching on TV knew exactly
what he was doing. Earlier in the year, South Korean speedskater
Kim Dong Sung had been deprived of a gold medal in the Olympics
after a protest by American Apolo Anton Ohno, who got the
gold instead. The celebration was Ahn's-and
Korea's-way of reply. Many viewed it as brilliant.
Americans were incensed.
At the end of the World Cup, Ahn should have had the world
at his feet. An internationally known hero, good looking,
with a huge fan base-why weren't clubs clamoring
to sign him? Several of his teammates have headed to Europe
and done quite well. The problem for Ahn was that he had already
been there and hadn't done well. He was used only fitfully
by Perugia and certainly didn't do enough to encourage
clubs to sign him. So he ended up at Shimizu S-Pulse after
a Japan-based management company bought out his contract.
Cynics said that Ahn should have fit in there, as Shimizu
was known as a team of prima donnas, and after a short settling-in
period, he proved to be both talented and popular. But with
impoverished Shimizu faltering, Ahn dreamed of greater things-specifically,
Europe. Offers seemed to come and go, but none would stick.
Some soccer watchers believed that he was badly advised; others
thought that he needed to be close to Korea to bail out his
mother when she got into trouble, as she did two years ago
after running up gambling debts and the fraud conviction in
relation to unauthorized licensing of her son's image.
In the end, Ahn's move to the Yokohama F. Marinos will
give him a chance to prove his worth and perhaps a final chance
to reach Europe again. The striker, who turned 28 in January,
remains ambitious, and if he hits his stride in Yokohama,
the world could once again be his oyster.
Yokohama F. Marinos will play against
Persik Kediri on February 24 at Yokohama's Mitsuzawa
Stadium, kickoff 7pm. See listings for details.
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