In the early morning of February 18, Beijing time, the AMERICAN media "TMZ" reported that 49-year-old women's billiards legend Janet Lee has been diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer, and doctors estimate that her life is only a few months to a year. But in the face of death, Janet Lee, nicknamed "Black Widow", was not afraid, she said, "I will never give up!"
After the diagnosis, Janet Lee posted a statement on social media, although her condition is now very critical, but in the face of the disease, Janet Lee's determination is still firm, "The cancer cells have completely metastasized to my lymph nodes, and now the situation is very bad, the doctor told me that I only have a few months left, no more than a year." However, I will use the courage on the pool table to fight the disease. I will never give up, and for the sake of my three daughters, I must do it! ”
It is worth mentioning that two days ago, when the news of Janet Lee's illness came to light, her relatives and friends launched a fundraising campaign for her on the website, although this fundraising project was established in janet Lee's name, but in fact the money raised will be used to treat her, and part of it will become the support fund for her three daughters, 16-year-old Shayan, 11-year-old Chloe and 10-year-old Savannah. As a single mother, the life of Janet Lee, once the world's number one, is so embarrassing that it is hard to believe.
Fundraising is now approaching $90,000
<h1>How "Black Widow" was refined</h1>
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Janet Lee, who is sharp and temperamental, often dressed in black, is the first generation of Korean Americans. Although her family was well-off, Janet Lee had many disasters since she was a child: at the age of 4, she had a tumor, an abscess on her leg at the age of 11, scoliosis at the age of 12, and two steel bars were planted in her spine at the age of 13 to be able to stand up. Later, she underwent many painful surgeries due to herniated discs in her neck and tendonitis of her shoulder biceps.
In 1989, janet Lee, who was only 18 years old, came into contact with billiards by chance and has been fascinated by the sport ever since. In just 3 years, Janet Lee became a professional billiards player, behind which was an almost "crazy" asceticism. When she first began to learn the basic skills of billiards, Janet Lee was troubled by not being accustomed to the basic hand shape of billiards, and in order to solve this problem, she used tape to fix the handle in the standard posture every night before going to bed, even getting up and taking a bath. In addition, she often played for more than 10 hours straight, and even once for 37 hours.
Janet Lee has achieved an amazing job as a professional, playing in the Women's Billiards League (WPBA) for less than a year before becoming one of the world's top 10 female professional golfers. In 1994, Janet Lee won two eight-goal competitions at the Baltimore Championship and the Washington Championship, and then won several fancy billiards trophies. With winning the annual WPBA Fancy Nine-Goal Championship in 1996, Janet Lee reached the peak of her career at number one in the world. In 1997, as an Asian-American billiards player, she won America's Player of the Year. According to statistics, Janet Lee has won more than 30 national and international championships in her career.
In the 1980s and 1990s, Janet Lee quickly conquered legions of fans with her superb skills, unique style and beautiful appearance, appearing on the cover of ESPN magazine The Body, participating in South Korea's "Dance with the Stars" program, shooting commercials for ESPN Sports Center, and even making a cameo role in the Disney movie "Another Sister". In 2009, Janet Lee became a spokesperson for the American Billiards Association (APA), and subsequently served as the administrator of the APA League before entering the American Billiards Hall of Fame in 2013.
Many people think that Janet Lee's nickname "Black Widow" comes from her dress and play style in the game, but in fact, the title "Black Widow" was obtained by Janet Lee when she was practicing. At first she was a little worried, because despite the cold look in her eyes during the game, the nickname did not truly reflect her nature. Although she struggled with the issue as a young woman, in a 2012 interview, she said she already liked the nickname: "Because I saw from people that what they loved was the way I was." They liked my competitiveness, femininity and strength, and I think the nickname represents that side of me. I'm also a mother and a friend, and I have another very social, gentle side. ”
Janet Lee has always been considered one of the most senior players in billiards, but in reality, her career has been battling scoliosis. Janet Lee has had more than 10 spinal surgeries for scoliosis since she was 12 years old, and she has also withdrawn from most of the competitions for physical reasons over the past decade. Last year, Janet Lee's billiard hall was severely affected by the epidemic, and her financial situation began to become stretched. Even more heartbreaking, Janet Lee recently discovered that she had ovarian cancer because the pain of scoliosis over the past few years masked the symptoms of ovarian cancer, and she did not notice it until her condition worsened.
<h1>Family life is a mystery</h1>
According to the website that raises money for Janet Lee, she is a single mother of three who has been alone for the past few years to take care of her three children. In fact, Janet Lee once had a happy marriage, and she looked cold and had a gentle and delicate heart. Janet Lee met fellow billiards American George Bridelov at a tournament in 1996, and just three days later, they fell in love at first sight and married in lightning. After getting married, they left New York and settled in George's native Indiana in the Midwest.
There is not much public information about the couple, which shows that they are very concerned about their private lives. Born on November 30, 1965, Bridelof competed on the Pro Tour at the age of 26, became Lexington All-Star Game champion in 1994, and finished third at the World Championships, nicknamed "Flamethrower". On Janet Lee's personal social platform, she also posted a photo of the two in 2014.
But now, Janet Lee and Bridelov are divorced, and of the three daughters Janet Lee raised alone, in addition to the two daughters she gave birth to Bridelov, Sha Yan is a Korean and American mixed-race girl adopted by her husband. Now, Janet Lee is fighting the final battle with the disease, and I wonder if Bridlov will be with her again after the news is exposed...