Chinese-Canadian ballerina Chan Hon Goh is being honored for her achievement as a Canadian immigrant, according to a report by the Canadian Broadcast Corporation (CBC) on Wednesday.

Goh, the National Ballet of Canada's first principal dancer of Chinese heritage, is being celebrated at a Toronto gala Wednesday and presented with a New Pioneer Award for her outstanding achievement in the arts.

According to the Toronto-based organization's website, the honor is meant to celebrate "those who have gone first and so prepared the way for others." Goh was eight years old when her family moved from Beijing to Vancouver. At the age of 15, she won the prestigious Prix de Lausanne, one of the most important international competitions for young dancers.

Goh accepted a position with the National Ballet's corps de ballet in 1988 and soon began moving up the ranks: making second soloist in 1990 and first soloist two years later. In 1994, she was promoted to principal dancer.

Over the years, Goh has starred in many of ballet's notable lead roles, including Odette/Odile in Swan Lake, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Tatiana in Onegin and Cio-Cio San in Madame Butterfly, a role she recently reprised in Toronto. She has also published an autobiography, entitled Beyond The Dance, and together with her husband, has launched a company designing and selling dancer-designed ballet slippers and pointe shoes.

(Xinhua News Agency March 10, 2005)