I just had to post this up as well. This was Oggi's "Picture of the Day", as seen on her blog, I Can Do That! Gotta hand it to this Filipino/Polish American, JR Celski is definitely representing his Pinoy pride!!! [notes to follow regarding the significance of the three stars and sun motif].
February 21, 2010
by Samantha Chang
by Samantha Chang
Celebrity Fitness and Health Examiner
Speed skater JR Celski, who was disqualified Feb. 20 in the 1000m semi-finals, caused a stir when he took off his shirt Saturday and displayed a large sun tattoo in the middle of his chest.
Celski, 19, was visibly upset after being disqualified in the semi-final heat of the 1000 meters in short-track speed skating after jostling with Canada's Francois Hamelin during the race.
But the worldwide media was more abuzz about the large "three stars and a sun" tattoo displayed across JR's chest when he took his shirt off in the waiting area shortly after being DQ'ed.
[My notes - Flag Info: The three stars represent the three main island groups of the Philippines: Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao...the sun's eight rays represent the eight provinces that revolted against Spain during the Philippine Spanish Revolution in 1896.]
HOMAGE TO FILIPINO MOM
The "three stars and a sun" tattoo is reminiscent of the national flag of the Philippines, and pays homage to Celski's mom, Sue, who was born in the Philippines. JR's dad is an American of Polish descent who served in the U.S. Army.
Meanwhile, Vancouver has been a great games for Celski. On Feb. 14, he won a bronze medal in the men's 1500m short track final. Celski's U.S. teammate, Apolo Ohno, won the silver medal in that race,
while the gold went to Jung-Su Lee, 21, of South Korea
Celski is scheduled to race again Feb. 26 in the mens 5000m relay with American teammates Apolo Ohno, Simon Cho and Travis Jayner.
OVERCAME HORRIFIC INJURY
JR, one of the brightest stars for the future of U.S. speed skating, overcame a career-threatening injury recently.
While competing in the US Olympic trials in September 2009, Celski plunged the tip of his right skate deep into his left leg when he hit the boards coming out of a turn in the 500-meter quarter finals.
The razor-sharp blade sliced through Celski's suit and through his left quadricep muscle all the way to the femur, leaving an ugly 6-inch gash above his knee and missing his femoral artery by one inch.
"I had to pull [my own skate out of my leg]," he said. "I saw my femur. It's not fun seeing things you don't normally see in your body."
Celski was immediately rushed to a nearby hospital where he underwent extensive surgery requiring 60 stitches.
JR was able to recover fully after months of intense physical therapy under the care of orthopedic surgeon Eric Heiden, the ex-U.S. speedskating champion who won 5 gold medals at the 1980 Winter Olympics.
Celski and Ohno will race together in the 5000m relay finals Feb. 26.
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Check out this 24-Hour Fitness Commercial here...
You can see JR sporting a Manny Pacquaio t-shirt complete with the colors of the Philippine flag (red, blue and yellow)!
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On another note, JR Celski is not the first Filipino American to be in an Olympics...
Others of note include:
A notable first -
Victoria Manolo Draves - won 2 golds in the 1948 Olympics in platform and springboard diving. She was the first Filipina to win a gold medal in the Olympics and the first woman to win both medals in these events.
Other Filipino Americans in past Olympics:
Elizabeth Punsalan - ice dancer with partner Jerrod Swallow, 1994 and 1998 Olympics
Liz Masakayan - pro beach Volleyball player, 1988 Olympics
Tiffany Roberts - at the age of 18, won the gold medal in the 1988 Olympics in women's soccer
Natalie Coughlin - won the gold in swimming in 2004 and 2008 Olympics (she is one quarter Filipina)
There may be more but those are the ones that I know of for sure.
7 comments:
wow that injury sounds horrific. ugh...and to come back and win medals in the olympics? thats an olympic feat (no pun intended).
i hear this kid is the heir apparent to apollo ohno.
looks like celksi bounced back from his injuries too...
Hey that's interesting on the tatoo. I saw it on tv when he found out he was DQed and I was wondering what it was. His story has definitely been really interesting. I've been following it since I've watched like every minute of the Olympics and every profile piece NBC has done. heh.
I was disappointed when he got disqualified but quickly recovered when I saw his bare chest and the tattoo. LOL
His tattoo created such a buzz there are over 2.6 million google results/items about it.
Relay is my favorite event because of its utter craziness and chaotic action. Can't wait to watch!:)
hi kirbie
sadly i didn't watch his race or his DQ or saw the "uproar" over his tattoo. most Filipinos will recognize the design. that is SOOOOO Badass, I must say. Wow.
I dont' mean to sound pervy, but yeah, wow. ha ha.
Hi oggi
i hope his career takes off - seems like a really nice kid too.
Very cool tattoo! Canine, would you get a tat with some sort of Filipino motif/symbol?
My cousin has our family crest on his back. It covers his entire back. It's the coat of arms for the Hidalgo and Vergara sides of our fam. It's really beautiful, but I dunno if I could sport a tat of that measure!
hi c - yes i would but in reality, i'm too much of a wimp to get a tattoo. i don't even like entertaining the thought of how a needle would feel scraping my skin!
my sis has the sun and stars on the back of her neck. she has about 6 or 7 tattoos now (son's names, etc). my bro has several cool designs - one of them utilizing the ancient Philippine syllabary (not an alphabet, btw), baybayin.
if i could withstand the pain and not be judged at work (bc i wear a lot of sleeveless blouses), i'd totally get a BADA$$ tat on my left upper arm/bicep. but of course, i won't. imagine that - the tattooed high school counselor. ha ha.
none of this ladylike shit on my ankle or hidden somewhere, i'd want it to show! but, ha ha, i'm a big chicken. :)
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