When Alex Eala won the US Open girls championship tennis title in September 2022, without dropping a single set in the entire tournament, it was a ‘remember the name’ moment.
In New York she became the first Filipino to win a tennis Grand Slam of any kind, and the reaction back home was wild.
“Surreal,” is the word Eala uses, “I think that it brought a lot of joy to the Philippines, which I’m super thankful for, and I’m super blessed to have such a community to rally behind me.
“I really wish that I could have gone home to see everything,” the trailblazer tells Olympics.com via videocall from California.
Among the many congratulations were names like boxing legend Manny Pacquiao, the Filipino president Bongbong Marcos, and Rafa Nadal.
Eala moved to the Rafa Nadal Academy (RNA) at 13 years of age. Since joining the RNA she’s racked up junior doubles Grand Slam titles at the Australian Open in 2020 and the French Open in 2021, had three podium finishes at the SEA (Southeast Asian) Games in Vietnam 2022, and become the highest ranking Filipina of all time on the pro circuit.
Oh, and did we mention that she achieved all of this before her 18th birthday?
