Women's Basketball

Born to an American father and a Korean mother, Brown spent last season in the second league of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) reaching a per-game average of 9.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists in her 29 games.

As a point guard and shooting guard, her strengths include breaking through to the basket and tossing up middle shots. Thanks to the gymnastics and diving she pursued as a child, her coordination and flexibility are well developed. Both natural and beautiful, Brown stands out from the crowd despite wearing no makeup.

But she has absolutely no interest in her good looks. "Aside from once, for my graduation party, I don't think that I've ever worn a skirt," she said. A staffer at Kumho Life Insurance, whose team she is to play for, says, "We went to an accessory store to buy her a gift, and she ended up choosing an elastic hair band." Her pretty face seems to be hereditary.

When her family is mentioned, a special tone of affection for her mother creeps into Brown's voice. "Whether it was working at a candy shop or a convenience store or running a boarding house, everything she did was for her daughter," she recalls. "My mom was worried about discrimination against people of mixed race in Korea. That may have been why there weren‘t many opportunities to come here."

According to rules of the Woman's Korea Basketball League (WKBL), Brown may play as a Korean athlete since one of her parents is a Korean national. So this season she will be donning the uniform of the Kumho team. "Even though I still have to face the issue of naturalization, my goal is to play for the Korean national team," she says. "I even have a Korean name: Yu-mi."

(englishnews@chosun.com )