According to sophomore Raphaela Slager, her love of skating began when she was in fifth grade. She said she discovered the sport when she tried it out with her sister.

“There was a day off (of school), and my sister had skating lessons,” Raphaela Slager said. “I was testing it out, and I liked it, and so it started from there.”

Raphaela Slager said her team started out as a synchronized skating team but eventually changed to a figure skating team.

“There’s a skate team. It’s a compulsory team. It used to be the synchro team, but then it became so small it became the compulsory team because there were six people, and a synchro team needs eight,” Slager said.

Slager’s mother Hadassah Slager said Raphaela Slager has significantly improved her skating throughout the years.

“I watched old videos from a few years ago, and she has always skated nicely, but then she was at her beginning stage, and now she can really do cool stuff,” Hadassah Slager said. “I think it really has to do with practice. The more hours you put on and the more chances you take, the better you get at something.”

Raphaela Slager said her favorite aspects of skating are the costumes and competitions.

“Definitely performance costumes and the skate show. One’s coming up in two weeks, I’m really excited, I have a solo. My dress is beautiful. I love it,” Raphaela Slager said.

Hadassah Slager said she supports Raphaela Slager by pushing her to practice more and cheering her on at competitions.

“I make sure I always sign her up for more lessons. If she wants to go for free skate, we’ll make sure she goes. Sometimes she will go for competitions, and she pushes herself a bit, and we enjoy watching her. I think that’s most important,” Hadassah Slager said.

According to Raphaela Slager, each competition costume is unique.

“It can range depending on what your performance is. I actually have a competition, and I’m dressing up as Ursula,” Raphaela Slager said. “It can really vary, (but) there’s always lots of sparkles.”

Hadassah Slager said she loves seeing a different part of Raphaela Slager’s personality at skate competitions.

“I enjoy seeing a side of her that comes out when she skates. You have different personalities, and so when she’s skating (she is) not a different person, but she has a different aspect of herself that comes out on the ice,” Hadassah Slager said.

Hadassah Slager said Raphaela Slager is successful due to her resistance to give up.

“I think she has a lot of perseverance and she will go on until she (reaches her goals),” Hadassah Slager said.