THERE will be a Filipino participating in the 21st Winter Olympics.
No one (as of press time) will represent the Philippines in the upcoming Winter Olympics. But there is a Filipino-American who will be representing the US.
Fil-Am Amanda Evora and pairs figure skating partner Mark Ladwig qualified for the Winter Olympic games after placing second at the US Championships in Washington earlier this month, earning them the right to represent the United States in the pairs’ figure skating event in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, BC in February.
Pairs skaters16-year-old Caydee Denney and 25-year-old Jeremy Barrett placed first in the US Championships.
It is the first time Evora will participate in the Winter Olympic games.
The 25-year-old Evora was born in New York City and currently resides in Bradenton, Florida where she trains at the Ellenton Ice Arena and goes to school at the University of South Florida. Evora’s father, Vicente "Boy" Evora is originally from Calapan, Oriental Mindoro.
Her father, Vicente, is a chemical engineer.
Evora, a five-foot, 99-pound figure skater, has been skating with Ladwig since 2002.
The silver medals at the 2010 US Championships were their first medals earned together. Prior to that, their best placement at a US Championships was fourth, which they accomplished in 2007 and 2009, according to the Ice Network.
Evora is the youngest of three children.
She began ice-skating at the age of six after her father found her older sister’s skates and they fit, according to her bio on the Ice Network.
She started pair skating in 2000. She first partnered with Mike Adler before skating with Ladwig in 2005.
Aside from skating, she also teaches ice-skating part time while studying Business Administration at USF.
She is also romantically involved with Jeremy Barrett, who skates on a rival pairs team.
But there is no conflict when they compete.
She told the LA Times it’s not difficult to separate her professional life and personal life.
"I have competed against my boyfriend, Jeremy, for many years," Evora told the Times. "Nothing has changed. We do know when it’s boyfriend-girlfriend time and when it’s skating time."
She added, "We’ve learned our boundaries for each other, when to be there for each other, when not to be. Personal is personal, and business is business. So it makes complete sense in my mind. I know it seems kind of odd to a lot of people."
( Published January 30, 2010 in Asian Journal Los Angeles p. A10 )
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
