“It’s an inspiration for me to see that Olympic champions make a lifetime of sacrifice and a lifetime of hard work. To know I’m 25 and a late bloomer, there is hope for the future.” Evora said.

It was great seeing more Filipino faces representing Team USA at the Winter Olympics this year. As everyone knows, rising star J.R. Celski won bronze and I found out about Amanda Evora from Kate Agathon. Evora recently placed 10th in pairs skating which is the lowest finishing position ever for the top-ranked U.S. team at the Winter Olympics, and the U.S. has not won a pairs medal at the Winter Olympics since Kitty Carruthers Conrad, who now lives in Houston, and brother Peter Carruthers won silver in 1984.  This was Evora and Ladwig’s first shot at world-class competition. The pair had their two season-best scores but were still outdistanced by the top teams. Although, Evora did not place in the top I really commend her for having hope in the future, especially in a sport that views her as close to being too old to compete at the sport.  At 25, Evora considers herself a late bloomer and inspired to see that Olympic champions make a lifetime of sacrifice and a lifetime of hard work. After the Winter Olympics, Evora still has the world championships in Turin so definitely keep an eye out for the Fil-Am skater.