A perfectly timed knee to the solar plexus" is how Ramona Pascual A described the move that rounded out her debut year as Hong Kong’s first and only woman to fight in the UFC. Except the knee in question came from her competitor Tamires Vidal. Having lost her last fight of 2022 in Las Vegas, Pascual used the opportunity to reflect. “Devastated at how things turned out but I’m far from broken,” she wrote on Instagram. “It takes a lot to live this kind of life and reach limits behind closed doors that most people will never know … I’m here to keep it real and do me. No apologies. Rock bottom we’ve been here before. And I’ll claw my way out every time.”
Rather than a wave of a white flag, it was a war cry that ignited the Hong Kong fighter’s fans, who showered her with encouragement. It didn’t matter that this was Pascual’s third loss of the year, bringing her future with the UFC into question: her entry to the highest level of her sport last January broke barriers for Hong Kong athletes, and after years of disrupted training due to the pandemic and a crushing injury, it brought her name into the cage at an international level.
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Denne historien er fra March 2023-utgaven av Tatler Hong Kong.
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THE LAST WORD
Every issue, we ask our cover star a round of quickfire questions that give us a little more insight into their personalities. This month: Gulf Kanawut lays it bare
WOMEN AT THE WICKET
Asia's women's cricket teams from outside the Indian subcontinent have been rapidly rising up through the ranks, creating opportunities, breaking barriers and changing the game as they go
TIME TURNER
A 2024 Turner Prize nominee, British Filipino artist Pio Abad talks to Tatler about carrying on family legacy, unearthing historical connections and why the Philippines is always at the core of his work
ROYAL RICHES
Ahead of the opening of Prince and the Peacock, Black Sheep Restaurants' latest establishment, Tatler joins the hospitality group on a culinary pilgrimage to India
MAKING HER POINT
Foil fencer Daphne Chan is happy to see the rising interest in her sport since Cheung Ka-long's historic win, and is headed to the Games with impressive wins behind her. But she's not allowing the pressure to get to her, and is most excited about who she might meet in Paris
IN IT TO WIN IT
Hong Kong freestyle swimmer Ian Ho, whose Instagram handle @Amphlb_ian playfully alludes to his aquatic prowess, competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and won silver in the men's 50 metres freestyle at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou. This month, he will represent Hong Kong at the Paris Olympics. He talks to Tatler about making Hong Kong proud, life as a student and professional athlete-and why relaxing is the way forward
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Two-time Olympic swimmer Camille Cheng thought Tokyo 2020 would be her last Games, but competing in Paris was too big a draw for the French Chinese athlete
INTRIGUE AND INTRICACIES
Parisian artist Ugo Gattoni takes us through his elaborately designed poster for the Olympics and Paralympics in his home city this month
Crafting a New Legacy
Nicholas Lieou, creative director of high jewellery at Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group, is reimagining jewellery, as the brand celebrates its 95th anniversary
A Lasting Legacy
Tatler explores Cartier's latest Watches and Wonders novelties with the maison's image, style and heritage director, who explains how the luxury house continues to create designs that are relevant today, yet rooted in legacy
