ALEXANDRA “ALEX” EALA is shooting for the moon and the stars, with her feet remaining rooted in her origins.
Riding on the waves of one feat after another as the first Filipina tennis superstar, Ms. Eala is making sure to stay grounded and pay homage to all those who have come before her and flew the Philippine flag all high and proud around the globe.
One of them is Manny Pacquiao, an eight-division world champion, a Hall of Famer and a national icon whom Ms. Eala considers as one of the trailblazers for Filipino dreamers like her today.
“Of course, the kind of national hero in sports in the Philippines is Manny Pacquiao. He is the kind of first global athletic figure from the Philippines,” beamed Ms. Eala ahead of her Round of 16 clash against Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in Wimbledon, after ending the reign of defending queen and world No. 3 Iga Swiatek of Poland via sweep, 7-6(9), 6-2.
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