12-year-old Mazel Paris Alegado leads Philippine skateboarding squad in Nagoya Asian Games – BusinessWorld Online
IT ISN’T everyday that a 12-year-old is leading one sport of the national team in an event as big as the Asian Games (Asiad).
Meet Mazel Paris Alegado, the youthful Southeast Asian (SEA) Games gold medalist who is spearheading the lean but mean Philippine skateboarding squad wading into battle in the Asiad set Sept. 24-27 at the Hall C of the Aichi International Exhibition Center in Japan.
Ms. Alegado, who became the youngest Filipino to ever win a SEA Games gold last year in Thailand as an 11-year-old, sets out to improve on her seventh place finish in the women’s park event in Hangzhou, China three years ago.
She will be oozing with confidence in Aichi following her double-gold effort in the 31st Mystic Sk8 Cup in Prague, Czechia last month.
She is to lead a five-strong squad composed of fellow Asiad veteran and SEA Games gold winner Jericho Francisco, Jr. (men’s park), Hangzhou vet Mak Feliciano (men’s street), Elizabeth Grace Amador (women’s park) and Renz Gelig (men’s street).
Margie Didal, the face of Philippine skateboarding for a long time now, wasn’t in the Aichi-bound roster for undisclosed reasons.
But expect Ms. Alegado to step up in Ms. Didal’s place. — Joey Villar