Filipino skier Asa Miller to compete in second straight Winter Olympics
The 21-year-old met the minimum qualification standard and will compete in slalom and GS at Beijing 2022, according to the Philippine Ski and Snowboard Federation.
Alpine Skiing
Asa Miller is set to become the first Alpine skier representing the Philippines to compete in two Winter Olympics.
The 21-year-old has recently met the minimum qualification standard for Beijing 2022 by surpassing the threshold of 160 points set by the International Skiing Federation (FIS).
According to Philippine Ski and Snowboard Federation (PSSF) President Jim Palomar Apelar, an official announcement of Miller's qualification will be made by FIS in December.
"Miller currently has 96 points in slalom and 93 points in giant slalom. The lower your score, the better you qualify," Apelar told Inquirer.net.
"He worked very hard on improving himself not only to get by the qualification standard. He is way better now than at the last Olympics,"
Miller was chosen by the PSSF over 17-year-old Brandon Leitner, who also met the qualification standard, but, says Apelar, "Asa has a better score than Brandon."
Miller, whose mother Polly Bisquera hails from Santa Cruz, Manila, will be among the around 150 competitors taking part in the slalom and giant slalom events at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 starting on 4 February.
The Portland-born skier was one of the two Filipino athletes at PyeongChang 2018, along with figure skater Michael Martinez, and was also his country's flag bearer at the Opening Ceremony.
In the Republic of Korea, Miller raced in the giant slalom event finishing 70th out of 110 participants.
The Philippines made its Winter Games debut at Sapporo 1972 by qualifying two alpine skiers, Juan Cipriano and Ben Nanasca.
Alpine skier Michael Teruel qualified for Calgary 1988 and Albertville 1992, but he only competed in the latter, ranking 71st in the GS and 49th in the slalom.