By Nicole Damiano, ASTA Verified Travel Advisor with FG Luxury Travel · Updated August 2026
As some of you may know, Adam and I are die hard Bond fans. When we saw Yu-Na Kim’s performance in Lake Placid NY being celebrated and talked about here in Korea, we knew it was time to write a blog on their beloved skater.
I grew up watching ice skating in the Bryan Boitano, Elvis Stojko and Nancy Kerrigan days. My Mom and I would hog the TV on the weekends and watch the entertainers. I liked the calm romantic routines but always loved the more hiphop tones they sometimes performed too.
Here in Korea, I believe Yu-Na Kim is 3/4 of my students hero. They have traveled to Seoul to watch her skate and for every 5 essays my students turn in, they somehow work her into their writing. Yu-Na is a 19 year old skater that is now being trained in Canada by Brian Orser, who I remember watching skate with my mom. Yu-na is from Bucheon, South Korea and is I would say a national hero. Her face is similar to Dwight Howard’s in Orlando…all over the sides of billboards and in commercials ranging from cell phones to refrigerators. She is the 2009 World Champion. She is the woman’s record holder for both the short program and free skating. She is the first female skater to earn more than 200 points and also the first to receive +2.20 grade of execution for jumps. As of today, Yu-Na is ranted second in the world. Carolina Kostner from Italy leads by 51 points.
Yu-Na began skating when she was 7. Her coach encouraged her parents to continue her training because she was such a natural. She has her own signature move which her fans call the Yu-Na Spin.
Yu-Na is sponsored by Nike, Hyundai and Kookmin Bank. For those of you who have heard about the Visit Korea Year 2010-2012 (I know it is two years, thats Korea for ya) Yu-Na is an ambassador.
Below is her perfect 007 Bond Routine, Enjoy
How do you build a life around adventure and travel?Intentionally and incrementally. Most families who live this way did not leap from conventional to adventurous overnight. They built remote work capacity, paid down debt, tested longer trips, and had honest conversations about what they want from their lives.
What does an adventurous family lifestyle actually look like?Different for every family. For some it is long-term travel. For others it is weekend adventures close to home. What connects them is intentionality about how time is spent and a preference for experiences over accumulation.
How do you balance adventure with stability for kids?By finding stability within the adventure rather than treating them as opposites. Routines, rituals, and family rhythms travel with you. Kids need consistency in relationships more than consistency in geography.
What has travel taught your family?That people are fundamentally similar across cultures. That comfort zone is a smaller circle than it feels from inside. That the things worth having in life require effort and discomfort. And that time together doing hard interesting things is the most reliable source of family closeness.
How do you handle the pressure to live conventionally when you have chosen differently?By getting clear on why you made the choices you made and returning to that clarity when outside noise gets loud. Most families living unconventionally describe an initial period of explaining themselves that gradually gives way to just living the life.
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As some of you may know, Adam and I are die hard Bond fans. When we saw Yu-Na Kim’s performance in Lake Placid NY being celebrated and talked about here in Korea, we knew it was time to write a blog on their beloved skater.
I love Yu-Na! She's a great skater, I think the best in the world, as that 007 routine showed. She's got such strength AND grace… a flow which I think is hard to find in skating these days as the jumps get more difficult and the routines more and more demanding.
I agree, she is amazing!