WHEN asked what was behind her passion to become a full-time tennis player, Filipina athlete Alex Eala answered, “Being a professional is what I wanted to do”. That realization came after years of training, balancing academic work with games and tournaments from far places. This opened Eala’s eyes that she was more capable than what she thought. 

The tennis star’s love for the sport began with her elder brother, Miko. “It started out as me wanting to be like him,” she recalled. She started playing at the age of four, while building her foundation in tennis, she was studying at the Immaculate Conception Academy in San Juan and Colegio San Agustin in Makati. 

An Athlete’s Game Changer

At just 13, Eala moved to Spain and enrolled in the Rafa Nadal Academy, a prestigious training center, to further enhance her skills and capabilities. “The academy has been my home for the past seven years,” Eala remarked with great pride. In 2023, she graduated from the academy with renowned professional tennis player Rafael Nadal bestowing her diploma. 

Training vigorously with solid guidance, Eala captured her first junior Grand Slam doubles title at the 2020 Australian Open Girl’s Doubles and her second at the 2021 French Open Girl’s Doubles. She later made history as the first Filipino athlete to win a junior Grand Slam singles title at the 2022 US Open Junior Championships. 

This Year’s Breakthrough

2025 became a defining chapter in Eala’s career. She was ranked no. 140 at the Miami Open for the World Tennis Association (WTA) 1000. There, she was granted a wildcard, defeating other tennis champions such as Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko and Poland’s Iga Swiatek. In March of this year, Eala ranked no. 75 in the WTA’s top 100. Last August during the US Open, she won a main draw at a Grand Slam, scoring a 5-1 victory in the final set. The following month, during the Guadalajara 125 Open, she won her first WTA singles title. Eala is the first Filipino to reach all of these achievements, indeed a symbol of national pride. 

Recently, Eala represented the Philippines at the 2025 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Bangkok, Thailand from Dec. 9 til Dec. 20. With great honor, she was chosen as the flag bearer at the event’s opening ceremony. She finished strong in the women’s singles final bagging a gold medal, the first gold medal from a Filipina since 1999. 

The rising Filipina athlete has not only raised the bar for Filipino tennis, but she has also set herself as an example for young athletes to pursue their aspirations. From playing tennis at a very young age to training abroad, she proved that sacrifice and courage will seal victory. 

As Eala confidently stated, “With the right work and the right people, I will be at the top at some point.” For her, being a young athlete is more than joining tournaments, it is finding your drive and support system, and with that, nothing can be taken away from you.