HOUSTON \u2013 You probably know me as the reporter on KPRC, but off the air, you can often catch me at the local ice rink.<\/p>\n
Figure skating has been a big part of my life for nearly two decades. It\u2019s a sport that\u2019s taught discipline, resilience and sportsmanship, lessons that shape who I am today. I\u2019m forever grateful it remains a part of my life.<\/p>\n
I started skating after watching the 2006 Torino Olympics on TV. There was a skater named Sasha Cohen, and I wanted to be just like her. Her gracefulness, flexibility and artistry stood out to me at a young age.<\/p>\n
Jaewon Jung old skating pictures (KPRC)This was when I met Sasha Cohen at a show in Atlantic City! My friend in middle school was a sports photographer and got us VIP tickets to watch an ice show. I got to meet all the greats including my favorite skater! (KPRC)<\/p>\n
This had such an impact on me that I begged my mom to put me in skates and eventually she signed me up for Learn-To-Skate lessons in Wall Township, NJ near where I grew up.<\/p>\n
By then, I had already missed the cutoff to chase any Olympic dreams. Most elite skaters begin the sport at around four or five years old.<\/p>\n
Also, my family had no idea how expensive the sport was. From ice time, lessons, costumes, skating boots, skating blade to competition fees, test fees and travel expenses; my family didn\u2019t have the means to have me seriously train in the sport.<\/p>\n
Still, I was incredibly fortunate to have a supportive childhood coach, Barbara Delaney-Smith, who was so gracious and understanding. She is a big reason why I love the sport so much to this day and why I feel like I can be a part of it. When I couldn\u2019t afford new skating boots, I was able to purchase an old pair from one of her other skaters. When I competed at the North Atlantic Regional Championships, she let us stay at her condo for free because she knew otherwise there was no way I could go.<\/p>\n
Jaewon Jung skating (kprc)<\/p>\n
Truthfully, figure skating can feel like an exclusive sport. For a while, I stepped away for that very reason. <\/p>\n
But every time I took a break, I ended up missing it so much. <\/p>\n
There is something about the way the blades scrape the ice and the cold air blowing through your skin that is so liberating. It\u2019s a feeling I can\u2019t get anywhere else but the rink.<\/p>\n
Recently, I\u2019ve made it a goal to skate on my own terms. No matter where I go, where it\u2019s New Jersey, California, Oregon, Nevada or Texas; I end up back at the rink because it\u2019s been one of the only constants in my life. <\/p>\n
It really does feel like home.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"HOUSTON \u2013 You probably know me as the reporter on KPRC, but off the air, you can often…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":170752,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[50630,56,58,57,69024,37810],"class_list":{"0":"post-170751","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-houston","8":"tag-figure-skating","9":"tag-houston","10":"tag-houston-headlines","11":"tag-houston-news","12":"tag-jaewon-jung","13":"tag-olympics"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170751","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=170751"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170751\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/170752"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=170751"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=170751"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=170751"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}