Hines Ward has mixed ethnicity and is half Asian from his mom’s side. Ward’s mother, Young He Ward, raised him as a single mother in Georgia.
Soon after his parents came to the US, they divorced. The San Antonio Brahmas coach has always been vocal about racism faced by mixed children and Asian kids.
He said he faced a lot of discriminatory behavior and bullying against him as a kid, but in football, he found peace. The former football player said the sport saved his life and opened his eyes to a new reality.
The two-time Super Bowl Champion, Hines earned several accolades during his playing career. He was voted MVP of Super Bowl XL, and the wide receiver ended his career as one of the eleven players to have at least 1000 career receptions.
Hines Ward Ethnicity: Is He Asian?
Hines Ward has mixed ethnicity and is half-Asian. He was born to a South Korean mother and an African-American father. The former Steelers player has previously talked briefly about his ethnicity.
Previously, in an interview, Hines talked about the racism he faced for being an Asian athlete. He remembered being called “Jackie Chan of Football.”
As a kid, Ward had a hard time making friends. The Black kids wouldn’t hang out with him because he was Korean, and the white and Korean Kids wouldn’t make friends with him because he was black.
Ward visited South Korea for the first time in 2006 since his birth. He took the trip to South Korea with his mother, Young He Ward, and was honored by the South Korean President.
The football player-turned-coach even said, “I got more love there than I did in the States.” After his trip to South Korea, Hines said he understood what biracial children in South Korea feel, and there was hypocrisy to it.
In his interview with ESPN, Hines said racism towards Asians isn’t new and that people should be more sensitive. Previously, in 2010, then-US President Barack Obama appointed the former NFL player to the Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
Speaking to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Ward said, “Imagine the President picking me to be a face of Asian Americans all over the world. Me? Me?”
Hines also started the foundation Hines Ward Helping Hands Foundation to aid the plight of biracial children facing discrimination. With his foundation, Ward brings Korean kids to stay with American families for a week each football season.
Ward has stood by the message, “Never be ashamed; embrace the opportunity to be part of two cultures.”
Hines Ward Family: Parents And Wife
The San Antonio Brahmas coach, Hines Ward, was born in Seoul, South Korea. His father, Hines Ward Sr, was a soldier and married his mother while he was in South Korea.
The couple then came to the US and lived in Atlanta. But their relationship didn’t last long, and soon they divorced. Hines was raised singlehandedly by his mom, who spoke little English and worked low-paying jobs.
In an interview with The New York Times in 2009, Hines said his mother still worked in a school cafeteria, and he had little contact with his father.
Hines walked down the aisle with Lindsey Georgalas Ward, a native of Houston, Texas. The couple tied the knot in 2014 after two years of dating.
The couple share a daughter named Londyn Capri Ward, born in August 2021. Lindsey has shared a few family photographs on her Instagram handle. Also present in those family photographs is their pet dog, Lolita.
The former Jets player was previously married to Simone Ward, a sideline reporter, with whom he shares a son named Jaden.
Ward also has another child, a daughter named Jordyn, from his relationship with a woman named Melanie Smith.
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