(Chris Graythen via Getty Images)
No halftime show delights fans as consistently as Red Panda and her seemingly impossible unicycle and bowls routine, which made Tuesday’s performance at the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup final so disheartening.
The arena legend left the floor at Minnesota’s Target Center in a wheelchair after falling from her 7-foot-tall unicycle and appearing to injure her wrist, among other things.
Red Panda, whose real name is Rong “Krystal” Niu, attempted to walk off the floor with some help, but eventually stopped while a wheelchair was brought out to take her away.
The fall also had some potential consequences for the game before the Indiana Fever and Minnesota Lynx came out for the second half, as arena employees took some time to repair a dent in the court.
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Red Panda’s team released a statement to ESPN’s Pat McAfee the next day, revealing the accident was caused by a damaged pedal on her cycle and that she sustained a severe fracture on her left wrist which required a procedure:
“Thank you very much to all NBA, WNBA, Universities, media individuals and her ever supporting fans for your kindness and concern. Last night at Lynx/Fever she took a fall at the very beginning of the show, due to left paddle of her unicycle was damaged during transit, her left wrist was severely fractured at the same spot for the 2nd time. She was at the hospital for 11 hours last night. Hilton and Greta, from Minnesota Lynx, stayed with her at the hospital the entire night for her procedure. She is very grateful. She is on her way home now and the Doctors in Minneapolis have recommended that as soon as she gets home, she meet with an orthopedic surgeon for the 2nd part of repair.
Red Panda, wants me to Thank all of you for the kind wishes and support, it means the world to her. She much appreciates from her heart the support she is receiving. We’ll keep you all posted”
Among the people concerned about Red Panda were members of the Fever, who defeated the Lynx 74-59 to win a $500,000 prize pool. On an Instagram Live hosted by Fever guard Sydney Colson, injured Fever star Caitlin Clark sent a message of support while also filling in some teammates in on what happened.
Put simply, there is no other performer who does what Red Panda has been doing since the ’90s. The fourth-generation Chinese acrobat has become a legendary presence in the world of basketball, where fans who regularly attend games will almost inevitably see her do her act and wonder how on Earth what she does is possible.
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At more than 50 years old, she’s still going strong and even making some new inroads into television. She made the semifinals of “Britain’s Got Talent” this year and was part of a storyline in Netflix’s “Running Point,” in which one of the characters ponders, “How is she not the most famous person on Earth?” She was previously a contestant on “America’s Got Talent” as well.
