She may be only 11 years old, but skateboarder Mazel Paris Alegado already has goals to push the next generation of skaters after her gold medal win at SEA Games 2025.
BANGKOK — One is never too young to inspire. For 11-year-old Mazel Paris Alegado, she did so at the SEA Games 2025 in Thailand after winning gold in the women’s park event at the SAT Extreme Sports Park on Saturday.
Alegado, who is the country’s youngest gold medalist in the biennial meet, wowed the crowd in Thailand to take the win over eight other competitors including compatriot Elizabeth Amador, who came in second place to make it a 1-2 finish for Team Philippines.
After the final, she basked in being able to win gold for the country, while also being able to enjoy herself in the process.
“It feels crazy cause it’s my first SEA Games, and I’m so proud to represent the Philippines,” Alegado told POC Media.
“You know, it was so hype, everyone was like hyping me up. It was so funny, dancing, making new friends, making tiktoks, it was so fun.”
Alegado first began picking up her sport thanks to the influence of her brother, and after making headlines thanks to her gold medal, she hopes to do the same to the next generation of skaters — especially girls like her.
“I love inspiring people and especially like little kids and little girls, I just hope lots of people saw that even on the livestream… Yeah, I just hope they saw that and they want to start skateboarding like how I got inspired by my brother,” she said.
A mother’s backing
Of course, Alegado’s feat wouldn’t be possible without the help of her support system.
Arguably her biggest supporter is her mother, Pauline Cristianne Constantino, who flew with Alegado to Bangkok to compete for the national team.
Despite her initial hesitance in putting her daughter through a sport as risky as skateboarding, there wasn’t much that she could do, especially as she saw that the 11-year-old had already fallen in love with the sport and all its risks.
“I was in shock at first because at first actually, I was putting her in cheerleading and ballet and when she chose this sport, it was a shock. It was scary at first, because obviously, like the falls, the bails, it’s really scary but I saw how much she loved it so I had to support her,” she said.
At the end of the day, Constantino knows that Alegado can accomplish whatever it is that she wants to and as long as she keeps working hard, the family will also be there to support her.
“Yes, of course. I’m just happy that she’s happy. Like I said, she worked hard for this so we’re gonna keep going and we’ll see where it takes us.”
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Luisa Morales is a sports writer with a special interest in promoting women’s sports.
Her coverage highlights include the UAAP, PVL, Southeast Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. She also follows Alex Eala, the Philippine women’s national football team, and mixed martial arts.