Raya wants to give Malaysia something to celebrate in 2014
KUALA LUMPUR: Can you even imagine Malaysia having a representative at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia in 2014?
Well, judging by the icy determination of 16-year-old figure skater Raya Marissa Willoughby, that could soon be a reality.
Raya, whose father is Malaysian Farid Paul Willoughby and mother is American Betsy Willoughby, is ready to show that she is not skating on thin ice as far as her dream of becoming the first Malaysian to feature at the Winter Games is concerned.
“Raya in Malay means celebrate. I cannot wait for the day when the whole nation can celebrate with me when I represent Malaysia at the Winter Games,” said the rosycheeked girl after winning the ladies’ short programme national title in the 7th Malaysia National Figure Skating Championships at the Sunway Pyramid ice rink recently.
It was her fourth straight national title since 2009.
Raya, who currently trains under coaches of high calibre, has the opportunity to take part in high-level competitions in the Unites States, where she has spent most of her growing-up years.
She has been based in Florida since 2000 and, at the age of six, moved from group to competitive lessons, putting in many solid hours to perfecting the art of skating over the years.
Her first real test came at her maiden competition – the South Atlantic Regional Championship in USA – in 2005 and she made a flying start by winning the title.
And she has continued to blossom.
“But, in a way, it all started for me right here.
“I was born here in Malaysia and my first experience on an ice rink was at the Sunway Pyramid.
“I was three years plus when my parents brought me there. It was so cold but I just loved it,” said Raya, who is home-schooled and has a penchant for poetry, photography and film production.
Being the bright spark that she is, Raya successfully completed a university-level course in art history in her first year of high school at the age of 14. She has also published several books on poetry.
“I come back to Malaysia every year to compete in the national meet here and this gives me a great platform to catch up with my family and friends here,” she said.
Raya has been identified by the Ice Skating Association of Malaysia (ISAM) to represent the country at the International Skating Union’s (SKU) two sanctioned events – Junior Grand Prix in Italy and Estonia and Junior World Championships in Belarus – this year for exposure.
“Being goal-orientated, I have decided to give it a shot at representing Malaysia in the Winter Games. It will not be easy but I am willing to do anything to make it happen,” she said.
The teenager surely knows what she wants and is not going to let anything get in her way.
She has suffered from many injuries, resulting from the speedy spins she does on the ice rinks. An ankle fracture knocked her out for five months but even that did not stop her from coming back and improving on her jumps and spins.
The long hours of travelling from one venue to another for tournaments and from her home to the training centre have been physically challenging while the steep cost of home schooling, training, equipment and coaching fees have been mentally draining.
But all these have only toughened her up.
“The training rink from my home is about 1½-hour but my mom and I drive there daily.
“My mom does two jobs so that we can manage our finances and my dad is doing his best to attract sponsors. My parents have been instrumental in my success and I hope more people will come forward to help my cause,” she said.
“This sport is extremely hard ... but it is fun.
“It takes a lot of determination and sacrifices.
“I am one of strong mind and I am keeping my fingers crossed that I will be able to make history for Malaysia.”
The great Nelson Mandela once said: “It always seems impossible until it’s done.”
So who is to say this spunky teen won’t accomplish her mission? And when she does, it will surely inspire many other youngsters to chase their dreams.