Chinese Women Turn to Skateboarding to Lower COVID Tension
2022-07-21
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1Some women in China are finding out they do not have to be skilled like 15-year-old Olympic champion Nishiya Momiji of Japan to enjoy skateboarding.
2There is a version of skateboarding called surfskating that is a little easier for older people to learn.
3The city sport is giving women, like 40-year-old Mina Zhao, some time off from their COVID-19 worries.
4Zhao said she felt "cooped up" by Beijing's recent COVID-19 restrictions.
5The measures closed exercise centers like gyms and parks.
6But she discovered surfskating on social media and decided to give it a try.
7She learned by going to a free lesson near Beijing's famous Water Cube swimming stadium in May.
8At that time, the lessons had about 12 people.
9Now almost 100 come each week to learn from the teacher, a professional dancer named Duo Lan.
10Zhao even brings her husband and son.
11She said skateboarding "is having a positive effect" on her life.
12She said she has lost some weight and is not feeling as bad about how COVID restrictions may hurt her child's education.
13Zhao said she feels good about herself now and she feels better spending more time away from home.
14She even changed her hair color. It is now lighter than her natural color.
15She said the sport helps her feel comfortable being herself.
16Sometimes, when she is feeling worried, she even uses the skateboard inside her home.
17Surfskating also got attention partly because of the "buzz" snow sports, like snowboarding, got at the Beijing Winter Olympics earlier this year.
18Many people say surfskating feels like snowboarding.
19But skaters can make slow, wide turns without having to worry about hills or snow.
20Chen Yanni, 29, is another woman who tried surfskating this year and feels more calm.
21"You feel so free," she said.
22Yanni also found out about the sport on social media.
23She said although she is getting close to 30, the sport makes her feel young.
24"I love this feeling," she said.
25"It's like being a teenager again."
26One Chinese search engine said the number of people looking for the term "land surfboard" rose by 50 times in June compared to the year before.
27JD.com is an online seller based in Beijing.
28It said sales of surfskateboards went up by 80 percent in June compared to the same month in 2021.
29Burning Ice is a skateboard store with five shops in Beijing.
30A store supervisor, who did not want his name to be used, said the shops have had a 300 percent sales increase this year compared to the year before.
31Skateboards and surfskateboards cost between $60 and $600.
32They make up 50 percent of the rise in sales.
33And women are the buyers 70 percent of the time.
34Some women said they took up skating when they found out they would not be able to travel because of COVD-19.
35Thirty-four-year-old Yoyo works in business but likes to dive and surf when she goes to the beach.
36She said skating makes her feel "that I have returned to the beach."
37And she added, "It is hot in the summer but I have the wind in my hair and I feel free."
38I'm Dan Friedell.
1Some women in China are finding out they do not have to be skilled like 15-year-old Olympic champion Nishiya Momiji of Japan to enjoy skateboarding. 2There is a version of skateboarding called surfskating that is a little easier for older people to learn. 3The city sport is giving women, like 40-year-old Mina Zhao, some time off from their COVID-19 worries. 4Easing COVID tensions 5Zhao said she felt "cooped up" by Beijing's recent COVID-19 restrictions. The measures closed exercise centers like gyms and parks. But she discovered surfskating on social media and decided to give it a try. 6She learned by going to a free lesson near Beijing's famous Water Cube swimming stadium in May. At that time, the lessons had about 12 people. Now almost 100 come each week to learn from the teacher, a professional dancer named Duo Lan. 7Zhao even brings her husband and son. 8She said skateboarding "is having a positive effect" on her life. She said she has lost some weight and is not feeling as bad about how COVID restrictions may hurt her child's education. 9Zhao said she feels good about herself now and she feels better spending more time away from home. She even changed her hair color. It is now lighter than her natural color. 10She said the sport helps her feel comfortable being herself. 11Sometimes, when she is feeling worried, she even uses the skateboard inside her home. 12Surfskating also got attention partly because of the "buzz" snow sports, like snowboarding, got at the Beijing Winter Olympics earlier this year. Many people say surfskating feels like snowboarding. But skaters can make slow, wide turns without having to worry about hills or snow. 13'You feel so free' 14Chen Yanni, 29, is another woman who tried surfskating this year and feels more calm. 15"You feel so free," she said. 16Yanni also found out about the sport on social media. 17She said although she is getting close to 30, the sport makes her feel young. "I love this feeling," she said. "It's like being a teenager again." 18One Chinese search engine said the number of people looking for the term "land surfboard" rose by 50 times in June compared to the year before. 19JD.com is an online seller based in Beijing. It said sales of surfskateboards went up by 80 percent in June compared to the same month in 2021. 20Burning Ice is a skateboard store with five shops in Beijing. A store supervisor, who did not want his name to be used, said the shops have had a 300 percent sales increase this year compared to the year before. 21Skateboards and surfskateboards cost between $60 and $600. They make up 50 percent of the rise in sales. And women are the buyers 70 percent of the time. 22Some women said they took up skating when they found out they would not be able to travel because of COVD-19. Thirty-four-year-old Yoyo works in business but likes to dive and surf when she goes to the beach. 23She said skating makes her feel "that I have returned to the beach." 24And she added, "It is hot in the summer but I have the wind in my hair and I feel free." 25I'm Dan Friedell. 26Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on a report from Reuters. 27________________________________________________________________________ 28Words in This Story 29cooped up - v. (phrasal) to keep (a person or animal) inside a building or in a small space especially for a long period of time 30stadium - n. a very large usually roofless building that has a large open area surrounded by many seats and that is used for sports or music events 31lesson -n. an activity that you do in order to learn something 32comfortable - adj. a feeling without worries and of physical ease 33buzz - n. (informal) the things that are being said about something especially by the public or people in general 34______________________________________________________________________ 35What do you think of this story? We want to hear from you. 36We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 37Write your comment in the box. 38Under the box, you can see four images for social media accounts. They are for Disqus, Facebook, Twitter and Google. 39Click on one image and a box appears. Enter the login for your social media account. Or you may create one on the Disqus system. It is the blue circle with "D" on it. It is free. 40Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.