13-year-old Pinay ice skater arrives from US with 11 gold medals
08/28/2008 | 11:34 AM
MANILA, Philippines - While Team Philippines concluded its Olympic quest medal-less in Beijing, a 13-year-old Filipina athlete glided on ice half-way around the world in the United States to bag 20 medals, including 11 golds.
Anna Isabel Villafuerte, a native of Camarines Sur, flew for the US last June and embarked on a series of ice skating competitions organized by the United States Figure Skating Association (USFSA) and the International Skating Institute (ISI).
In the short span of three months, the Filipino ice princess emerged on top of all the four skating competitions she joined and eventually collected a total of 11 gold medals, six silver medals, and three bronze medals.
Villafuerte on Thursday arrived in the country with her mother via Philippine Airlines Flight PR-103, bringing along her hard-earned gold bounty.
The proud young skater thanked all the supporters who greeted her at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2, and expressed her appreciation to everyone who had prayed for her success in the US.
Villafuerte’s gold streak, however, was nothing new for her. Even before the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she had already made a name for herself in China when she copped eight gold medals at the 2007 ISI Competition that was also held in the Chinese capital.
Villafuerte’s knack for propelling herself on ice began at an early age inside a regular shopping mall in Metro Manila.
Her mother recounted how she used to leave her daughter inside an ice skating rink while she went shopping.
Realizing her daughter’s untapped potential, Fe sought the help of professional Filipino skating coaches Ted Domingo and Albert Aguila, who subjected the aspiring skating champion under rigorous training for five years.
Soon enough, Villafuerte found herself swinging on ice and battling it out with international competitors in various ISI and USFSA-organized skating matches across the globe.
Incidentally, Villafuerta is the first-ever Filipino to be accredited by the prestigious Colorado-based USFSA, giving her privileges of joining USFSA-sanctioned competitions and having the option of training under the watchful eyes of seasoned international skating mentors.
If it’s any indication, the young Villafuerte’s victory in the matches organized by the 196,000-member USFSA could increase her chances of becoming the first Filipino to make a mark at the winter version of the Summer Olympics.
She said she would go back to training in the US to prepare for the next two Winter Olympic Games that are set to be held in Vancouver, Canada in 2010 and in Sochi, Russia in 2014.
In the history of the Winter Olympics, only four Filipino athletes have so far competed, namely: Michael Teruel (alpine skiing, 1992 Albertville Games); Raymund Ocampo (luge, 1988 Calgary Games); Juan Cipriano and Ben Nanasca (alpine skiing, 1972 Sapporo Games). - Mark Merueñas, GMANews.TV
Anna Isabel Villafuerte, a native of Camarines Sur, flew for the US last June and embarked on a series of ice skating competitions organized by the United States Figure Skating Association (USFSA) and the International Skating Institute (ISI).
In the short span of three months, the Filipino ice princess emerged on top of all the four skating competitions she joined and eventually collected a total of 11 gold medals, six silver medals, and three bronze medals.
Villafuerte on Thursday arrived in the country with her mother via Philippine Airlines Flight PR-103, bringing along her hard-earned gold bounty.
The proud young skater thanked all the supporters who greeted her at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2, and expressed her appreciation to everyone who had prayed for her success in the US.
Villafuerte’s gold streak, however, was nothing new for her. Even before the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she had already made a name for herself in China when she copped eight gold medals at the 2007 ISI Competition that was also held in the Chinese capital.
Villafuerte’s knack for propelling herself on ice began at an early age inside a regular shopping mall in Metro Manila.
Her mother recounted how she used to leave her daughter inside an ice skating rink while she went shopping.
Realizing her daughter’s untapped potential, Fe sought the help of professional Filipino skating coaches Ted Domingo and Albert Aguila, who subjected the aspiring skating champion under rigorous training for five years.
Soon enough, Villafuerte found herself swinging on ice and battling it out with international competitors in various ISI and USFSA-organized skating matches across the globe.
Incidentally, Villafuerta is the first-ever Filipino to be accredited by the prestigious Colorado-based USFSA, giving her privileges of joining USFSA-sanctioned competitions and having the option of training under the watchful eyes of seasoned international skating mentors.
If it’s any indication, the young Villafuerte’s victory in the matches organized by the 196,000-member USFSA could increase her chances of becoming the first Filipino to make a mark at the winter version of the Summer Olympics.
She said she would go back to training in the US to prepare for the next two Winter Olympic Games that are set to be held in Vancouver, Canada in 2010 and in Sochi, Russia in 2014.
In the history of the Winter Olympics, only four Filipino athletes have so far competed, namely: Michael Teruel (alpine skiing, 1992 Albertville Games); Raymund Ocampo (luge, 1988 Calgary Games); Juan Cipriano and Ben Nanasca (alpine skiing, 1972 Sapporo Games). - Mark Merueñas, GMANews.TV
