Red Panda, the popular halftime acrobat known for balancing bowls on her head while perched high on a unicycle, is back home after falling and breaking her left wrist while performing at the Commissioner’s Cup final between the WNBA’s Indiana Fever and Minnesota Lynx in Minneapolis.
Riding on her custom-made unicycle at least 7 feet off the floor, Red Panda fell forward off her seat early in her routine, landed hard on the court on her behind and immediately grabbed her left wrist.
Video footage shows her being helped to her feet and taking numerous steps with assistance before sitting back down on the court. A wheelchair was eventually brought out to help her off the floor.
Pat Figley, a representative for Red Panda, told The Times in an email Wednesday that the accident happened because the left pedal of her unicycle “was damaged during transit.” The performer suffered “a severe fracture” in her left wrist for the second time in her career, Figley said.
Red Panda, whose real name is Rong Niu, suffered a broken arm more than a decade ago after falling backwards off her unicycle while practicing.
“Red Panda wants me to thank all of you for the kind wishes and support,” Figley wrote. “It means the world to her. She much appreciates from her heart the support she is receiving.”
Figley said Red Panda spent 11 hours in a Minneapolis hospital starting Tuesday night while a procedure was performed on her wrist. Doctors recommended that she see an orthopedic surgeon for further repair, he said.
Two Lynx staff members stayed with Red Panda the entire time she was in the hospital, he said, and the team mascot drove the acrobat to the airport afterward and helped her get checked in for her flight home to San Francisco.
“The folks were wonderful to her and she really appreciates everyone,” Figley wrote.
Red Panda performs at halftime during a Clippers-Pelicans game on Jan. 5, 2024, in New Orleans.
(Tyler Kaufman / Associated Press)
Born in Taiyuan, China, reportedly in the early 1970s, Red Panda is a fourth-generation acrobat who was first hired to perform during halftime at an NBA game by the Los Angeles Clippers in 1993. She has since been a staple at NBA games and numerous other athletic events, with her signature routine of using her feet to flip bowls onto her head while balancing high on her unicycle.
Niu suffered a broken arm more than a decade ago after falling backwards off her unicycle while practicing.
At Game 5 between the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma City Thunder last month, Red Panda gave a quick list off the top of her head of all the NBA Finals at which she has performed. It was extensive.
“Oh my God,” she said. “I did it for L.A. I did it for Chicago Bulls — that’s many years ago for the [Michael] Jordan years. And then, I did San Antonio, I did Boston, Warriors, Detroit. … And now I’m in OKC.”
Without the services of injured superstar Caitlin Clark for the third straight game, Indiana defeated Minnesota 74-59 to win the Commissioner’s Cup, the WNBA’s in-season tournament, for the first time. As Fever guard Sydney Colson live-streamed the players’ locker room celebration, Clark leaned in front of the camera and wished the injured acrobat well.
“Red Panda, we love you,” said Clark, whose sentiments were echoed by several of her teammates.
