Trading blades for skates, Chilean Blazer brings heat to the ice rink

There is no ice in Chile, but in a few years there could be a Chilean Blazer speed skating—on ice—for Olympic gold.

Sophomore Camila Silva came to the United States in 1998, unable to speak a word of English and never having seen an ice rink before in her life. Four years later, Silva has completed ESOL and is one of the nation's top in-line skaters. She is now training to be an Olympic ice speed skater.

Silva's biggest challenge is the transition from track to ice. In-line skating is not an Olympic event, so competing in the Olympics did not cross her mind until she moved to the U.S. "I never thought of it because we don't have ice in my country," she remembers. "I was like, ‘What's ice skating?'"

This July, Silva competed in a regional indoor in-line competition in which she placed in the top two in almost every event. She qualified for Nationals but had trained outside and was disqualified from the competition for violating indoor regulations.

At an outdoor race later this summer, Silva fell during a collision, puncturing her kneecap and leaving her on the sidelines.

Silva sees herself at the Olympics in 2006 at 18, but she may wait until age 23 depending on her physical condition, she says.

Silva's muscles are used to the intensity of her sport, as she has been skating since she was seven. At eight, Silva joined an in-line team, and by age 11, she placed first, second or third in every meet.

Silva had a difficult time finding a U.S. team, especially because she did not speak English. After a few months of skating solo, Silva joined Caravan, a Greater Washington in-line racing group. A speed skater who had been to the Olympics in the 1980s with the Korean team noticed Silva at an in-line race after about a year and suggested that she train for the Olympics.

Since then, Silva has been racing with Empire Skate, a New York-based team. She often wakes up earlier than 5:00 a.m. to practice, and she practices after school to refine new skills required for ice racing.

Silva's Olympic goals will lead her to New York next summer where she will move in with her father and practice regularly with the Empire Skate team.