Violinist Vanessa-Mae rehearses for a new role – Olympic skier

LONDON (Reuters) – Violinist Vanessa-Mae has put music on hold for a year and is rehearsing for a new role – skiing for Thailand at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, in February 2014. Vanessa-Mae, 34, is in training with the aim of competing in at least five internationally recognized events to qualify for the giant slalom and possibly the slalom at the Sochi Olympics. "People are surprised when they see me skiing – a classical violinist, Oriental, who has lived in the city all her life," Vanessa-Mae told Reuters in a telephone interview. …