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Vivian Lai Took Up Skateboarding With Zoe Tay Because The Coach Is “Handsome”

They also think he looks like Ian Fang.

They also think he looks like Ian Fang.

They also think he looks like Ian Fang.

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We’re pretty sure we weren't the only ones who did a double-take when Zoe Tay and Vivian Lai shared pics of themselves skateboarding last November. After all, the freestyle sport seems incongruous with their glamorous image, well, at least for Zoe.

Turns out, the 53-year-old, who’s quite a pro at skiing, had always wanted to try skateboarding and jumped at the chance when their kids wanted to take lessons.

Vivian, who has two daughters, Vera, 15, and Ariel, 11, joined them reluctantly as their “bag-watching auntie”.

“I wasn’t interested in skateboarding at all but I did it for my kids. During our first lesson, I told them to go ahead and that I would keep an eye on our bags. But when I saw the instructor, I rushed over to join them,” says Vivian during their skateboard battle on #JustSwipeLah, Mediacorp’s new bite-sized series that delivers the latest news and trends in lifestyle and entertainment.

1 of 7 Meet Vivian's "nan shen"

“He is so handsome!” she gushes, calling him her “nan shen” ('male god', literally) and “main source of joy” during lessons.

Zoe agrees as she chimes in: “He looks really handsome when he is skateboarding.”

2 of 7 They think he looks like Ian Fang too

According to Vivian, their 36-year-old instructor Pham Tan has made cameo appearances in Mediacorp dramas like CLIF 4 and is the go-to coach when actors need to learn to skateboard for a role. Some of the celebs he’s coached include Ah Boys To Men actors Tosh Zhang and Noah Yap, and Ian Fang.

In fact, the ladies think he looks like Ian (okay, we do see a slight resemblance) and would sometimes call him “Ian”.

Not that Pham minds. He tells 8days.sg that they were acquainted when he coached the actor for a skating scene in 2012 film Imperfect, and was later offered a part as a henchman for Li Nanxing in the movie.

3 of 7 How to get a guy's attention, according to Vivian Lai

Vivian shared that she initially mistook Pham for a Japanese and would try to “show off” her Japanese. “I started spewing all the Japanese words I knew like konnichiwa and sakura. Turns out he’s Singaporean,” she laughs.

And the bubbly actress isn’t shy about making her crush known. Like a boy crazy teen, the 44-year-old kept teasing and making eyes at Pham to get his attention during the shoot.

4 of 7 He’s cool with it

So what does Pham think of all the attention?

“I think it’s funny, not distracting at all. Having Vivian around is super fun ‘cos she is always joking around and trying to turn up the mood. I like that attitude of hers,” he says.

She’s made great progress on the board too. According to Pham, Vivian, who had never done any board sport prior to taking lessons, can now paddle and tic-tac by herself, and is getting more confident on the board— a far cry from when she first started: “She used to be scared and tense when she came for lessons and when I told her to try a move, she would refuse. But the whole point of taking lessons is to learn new tricks so I would force her to do it.”

5 of 7 Vivian’s getting the hang of it
6 of 7 Zoe conquers the ramp

Zoe, on the hand, is like a model student.

“She can ski so she’s more stable on the skateboard. She puts in a lot of effort during lessons and when she falls, she gets right back up. No complaints,” he says.

It’s no wonder Vivian is still at the beginner’s class, while Ah Jie has advanced to the intermediate level.

“It’s not that I am good. I really like skateboarding and I want to master it. I feel that learning to skateboard is not tough, but to do it well is a different story. I didn’t expect Vivian to want to learn skateboarding too, and she even managed to pick it up. So if Vivian Lai can do it, anyone can,” says Zoe.

7 of 7 Skateboard, but make it vogue

You can watch Vivian and Zoe’s skateboard battle on #JustSwipeLah here.

Photos: Mediacorp, Vivian Lai/Instagram

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