Bringing Olympic Dreams to Life with Figure Skater Iberia
As we watch more than 600 athletes represent the United States at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, it’s almost impossible to imagine the number of hours, months, and years they have dedicated to reach this moment in their lives. And while they are showcasing their talents, thousands of other athletes around the world are hard at work, preparing for their own Olympic dreams to come true – including FLVS 5th grade student, Iberia S.
Iberia’s figure skating journey began three years ago when she stepped onto the ice for the first time and instantly fell in love. Fast forward to today and her love for ice skating is as strong as her first session, if not stronger!
Iberia attends skating classes several times a week, constantly improving her skills – and her hard work is paying off! Last year, she competed in her first competition and earned awards for her solo and synchronized performances. And most recently, she won 1st place with the highest technical and performance scores against skaters from multiple states and levels!
Training for competition is demanding, but as an FLVS Flex student since the 2nd grade, Iberia has been able to customize her academic schedule to work around her busy training schedule. Her mother Lydia says, “Figure skating requires a lot of time to train, so being able to have her own school schedule is a tremendous help with her training, especially during the competition seasons. She can attend the live classes from anywhere, while also having the recordings available so she can go back at any time.”
Not only has Iberia been able to focus on her training, she’s also been able to advance to 6th grade level courses in multiple subjects! Lydia explained that FLVS teachers have been a crucial part of Iberia’s academic success. “All the teachers we’ve had since 2nd grade have been phenomenal. They always go above and beyond to make sure that Iberia has everything she needed, including having time to talk to us parents.”
Outside of the rink and classroom, Iberia enjoys participating in FLVS clubs, like the FLVS Chess and Gardening clubs. She also enjoys building things and says that in addition to her figure skating goals, she hopes to pursue architectural engineering in the future.
When we asked Iberia if she had any advice for other aspiring athletes, she said “training and persistence are the keys to success. Sports are very demanding and hard at the same time—with good days and bad days. But never give up! With practice, comes success.”
Wise words from a young athlete making outstanding progress on, and off the ice!
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Congrats Iberia. Your story has inspired to keep going in my swimming even when the going gets rough.
Thank you very much, I am glad swimming is great and hard sport keep on going!
Thanks.
You made my day to give give up on my track team we are going to the nationals my team name is Florida Track Elite
Thabk you, that great Antonio good luck I am sure you will do great. I am training for the upcoming national also. Let me know how your team does!
Good luck Antonio and your track team
That’s really an inspiration to have a good academic schedule, so you can do the one thing that you love the most figure skating. Congrats on making 1st place on your technical performance and your synchronized performances. You really are an Inspiration!!!
WOW! What a inspiring story keep up the amazing work and I love that you are able to pursue your dreams and do school at such a young age! Don’t you ever give up on your dreams no matter what people tell you lesson to your heart.
Hi Ella, good advise never given up is my motto. Sometime the training is hard, you spend hours in ice training and you also do off ice training stretching and strength so you get sore a lot. But it’s great worse it when you get first place have medals! School online is great I get to accomplish a lot. Thank you for the nice message.
Wow Iberia, keep up the great work! I also love playing chess and am thinking of pursuing engineering in college! I’m a really big figure skating fan too (my favorite skater is Yuzuru Hanyu 🙂 ), so it’s especially exciting and inspiring to read about generation of skaters working hard towards their dreams. All the best to you; maybe someday I’ll get to watch you skate at a major competition!
Hi June, thank you very much for writing. That is great you want to do engineering, I hope to do that also. Do you ice skate? Skating is a lot of fun, right now I am working on my jumps. I am going to sign up to the chess club this year. Thank you for the support soon I’ll have competitions and I’ll post updates for everyone!
Hi Iberia! Very unfortunately, I don’t figure skate, so I settled on the closest equivalent that’s available to me now – inline skating. I’ve been inline skating for almost a year now, and I’m getting more and more confident with the basics. It’s my dream to learn figure skating someday though, perhaps in college or after I graduate. What do you enjoy most about skating?
Hi I am sorry for the delay in responding I moved to another county in Florida and it has been very busy. In line skating is interesting, it’s hard because you need to have a lot of power. I am sure you are very good at it. 🙂 what I love the most about figure skating is working on the programs with the music it is fun to do. I moved and I have 2 new coaches and we getting ready for the new skating season in March. So the entire winter I train on the ice and also off ice. It’s a lot of work. I am sure if you try figure skating when yoh can you will love it. It is fun!
Congrats Iberia! I love to garden! I wish that I could figure skate. It’s amazing how you could manage school and working on your figure skating skills. I have a hard time doing that with my music. Thank you for being such an inspiration! Keep up the good work! Hey maybe one day I will see you in the Olympics! Best wishes☺
Hi Alysha, thank you for the nice words. Garden is great I did that last year with thr garden cly ? What music are you learning? I want to learn music also piano or violin. You should try skating it is fun. I hope for the Olympic also one say. For now training for the national. I will post updates on my competitions.
Hi Iberia, I am learning the piano and keyboard. Hopefully, I get a guitar for my birthday so I can learn how to play it. Maybe I will learn how to skate after covid is over.
Hi Alysha, I have not posted for a while things have been busy I moved and changed coaches so I had to get into a routine. Now I am skating every day to get ready for thr next competition seasons. Guitar is school I want to learn a new instrument also guitar, violin or piano it seems like a lot of fun. Do you have an ice rink by you? If so you should try it will be fun.
Sorry, I haven’t been on the blog recently. I get it. Unfortunately, I don’t have an ice rink near me. I would go with the piano. But, that’s just me 😊
Congrat’s Iberia keep it up your doing great.
Your very welcome Isabella u inspired me to carry my dream out with doing gymnastics!!!
Thank you so much Aurora I appreciate it very much.
Congrats Iberia! Maybe we will see each other at the Olympics one day. I like to swim and it is a hard sport especially when you have 2 meets and 2 practices in one week. Keep up the great work and don’t give up.
i hope you grow stronger because this america is not so good anymore and there hope in my heart for this shining star
Thank you Allyson, I am training really hard this winter especially for strength with the jumps that is the hardest part!
I really hope you get into the Olympics one day😁
Hi Sam, I am hoping also I can get to the Olympic it would be cool to be there!
good luck best wishes!
good luck and hope you make it to the Olympics
Thank you very much Amelia foe the support!
WOW! I do Olympic swimming. I almost gave up last year because I broke my leg, but I found out I would be alright and kept swimming, and got 1 place!
Keep on going! I want to go into the olympics, right now though I am only doing competitive swimming.
Olympic swimming that is hard very hard, I like swimming for fun but not a really strong swimmer. That is great you do that post update so that we can follow you.
Hello everyone, thank you for writing to me I appreciate it. I wanted to give an update as some of FLVS students were asking. I moved a couple of weeks ago from the west coast of Florida by Tampa to the East Coast of FL. I changed coaches now I train with 2 of them they are really great and they are former gold medalists. The training is a lot more technical! I will be spending the entire winter training for the next competition season in 4 months. Training is almost every day now on and off ice training. The days are very busy. Between that and school! I hope everyone is doing well and thank you again for writing I will post more updates! IBERIA.
Thank you for sharing, Iberia! The FLVS family is cheering you on!
Keep going and striving till you make it, Iberia! I believe you can make it through the competitions and beyond. I’m counting on it! No matter how hard it is doing training, I know you’ll do your best! Hope you’re doing great.
Thank you Karisma for the support. Still trying hard, competitions season will be here soon. I hope you are doing great also!
Hi I’m getting interested in roller skating or figure my fav figure skater is anna shcherbakova she’s so graceful and pretty 🙂
lol, I spelled my own name wrong, also I’m in the 6th grade.
Hi Leqh, figure skating is so much fun, I am sure you would like it very much. I do the competitions which is a lot of work but this year I am also starting theater on ice and that is a lot of fun! If you try figure skating le the know!
Hello everyone just wanted to give an update. Big competitions are around the corner in April the figure skating Florida state open championship is happening and I am training hard for it. If I qualify then I can go to the National Showcase. In the meantime, I am preparing for 2 Broadway theaters on ice, those are fun. I just wanted to say hi to everyone.
My grandma always says if there is anything you actually want to do all you have to do is want to do it. Keep on inspiring!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This may seem weird, but this article actually inspired me to get back into Mario Kart Tournaments. I used to do them all the time (Even winning some prize money!!) and your story reminded me of what my dreams were, too. Thanks, Iberia, and I hope to see you in a future Winter Olympics. =D
It’s very important to find what you like. I got involved with speed skating a few years ago, but after I broke my leg in a few places and tore my ACL, I can’t do it anymore. You keep doing you, Iberia.
-Philip Fleming, 8th Grade
Thank you very much, I play Mario Kart too on the switch it is fun! Speed skating is interesting I never done it but maybe one day I can try. The injuries are hard so far have bee lucky but with the jumps it’s hard on thr leg. Thanks for the support I appreciate it.
After months of training and changing skating location and coaches the dates to compete finally came May 7th is theater recital in Orlando RDV Ice Den and from June 3rd to June 5th is the ISI Summer Classic in Clearwater I will be participating in the technical program ans rhythmic ribbon. Thank you to everyone who follows and support me at FLVS!!!!
Hi, Iberia! I might be a little late with the comment. But this story really made my day. don’t stop with your passions. I may not do speed skating or most sports in general, but I am an aspiring cartoonist! so I relate to it in some way. (Also, I do love chess as well.) keep doing what you’re doing, Iberia! you’ve come so far.
Hi, Iberia! I might be a little late with the comment. But this story really made my day. don’t stop with your passions. I may not do speed skating or most sports in general, but I am an aspiring cartoonist! so I relate to it in some way. (Also, I do love chess as well.) keep doing what you’re doing, Iberia! you’ve come so far.
– Brianna Chavarria, freshman.
Thank you Brianna, never too late with comments! Cartoonist sound great it takes a lot of talent to do that. I am still training hard last Saturday I did a recital in Orlando and June 3rd going to Clearwater to compete. I’ll post what happens! Thabk you for the comment. 🙂
sorry for doing the comment twice, Thank you so much Iberia! I’m trying to finish an animated short, that’s very sweet of you! I hope you win!
well, I’m also doing a comic with my sister. hope it goes well!
hope everything goes well
wow!
thank you, Lola and Jesse!
I bet we compete at tge same ISI competitions . What freestyle level are you? I am freestyle level 4.
Good luck to you!
Cool, that sounds fun. I play football for the jr colts
Hi i am Gretchen and I am doing 6th grade on Florida virtual Flex!. This is my first year. I read your story and It’s amazing! I want to be like you someday! I mean maybe not figure skate but I want to tell others that they should never give up. I take guitar lessons and sometimes it’s hard. But I think i’m gonna keep taking them because of you & your inspirational story. That is so neat how you figure skate and great job on the win Iberia! Your amazing! Good luck on your other competitions! Oh and also school!
The girl who wants to be just like you, Gretchen Urbaniak
You cam following now on YouTube to know the latest about my skating.
https://youtube.com/@iberiasciacca
Hey! its gretchen again. Hows its going Iberia? your in 5th right? and what are you in the middle of learning?
in figure skating i mean.
Hi Gretchen, thanks for writing. Because I don’t take take break during the summers with school I was able to get to 8th grade now. Right now with skating I am working on my axel jump it’s always a challenge but it’s fun. I also taken on acting and modeling. I will be going to NEw York City in June to compete at the IMTA the international Modeling and Acting Association. What about you? How is everything?
Thx! I would LOVE to be your friend!
Gretchen, you can follow me also on my YouTube channel https://youtube.com/@iberiasciacca I’ll be glad to have you has friend!
Iberia.
Wow I can’t believe your already in 8th great job! And also, I would love to be your friend, but I can only talk to you through comments because of my parents🙄 if that’s okay with you. Keep up the good work and keep on inspiring! Hope I see you in the Olympics one day!
OMGGGG you are so good I watched some of your skating and I fell in love with how good you are at it!!!!!
Thank you very much for watching, I am glad you like it. I will be posting more videos of skating and acting I am doing. You ca. Subscribe to my YouTube channel. Thabks for watching! https://youtube.com/@iberiasciacca
No problem and i will subscribe!!!!!!☺
You are amazing I can tell you put in the work and push through. I was scrolling to come across this amazing little girl just made my day you need to be known and seen because your talent is amazingly rare.
Thank you very much everyone for your support I truly appreciate it! I wanted to announce in addition of the skating I was offered an opportunity to attend in June the famous IMTA (International Model Talent Association) in NYC as a model and actress. Where I will be competing in 8 competitions as a fashion model and acting. You can follow me at Instagram/iberia.sciacca and Youtube.com/@iberiasciacca. Thank you again everyone. Iberia
Congratulations, Iberia!
Thank you very much Elizabeth!
Just live your dream girl!!!
Thank you Sele!!!
I think you’re going to be a famos skater when you grow up!!!
Really I’m for reals!!!
AND I’M NOT KIDDING!!!
YOU SHOULD ALREADY BE FAMOS!!!
I’ve read you’re story plenty of times to know!!!
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
Thank you Sele I appreciate it.
Hello everyone, I wanted to give an update. I participated the the IMTA competition for modeling and acting in New York City several days ago. I was awarded a medal for high fashion runway and commercial acting. Many videos have been posted. Come and check it out at youtube.com/@iberiasciacca and Instagram.com/iberia.sciacca subscribe and follow me. If you have a YouTube or Instagram I will subscribe back! Iberia.
Congratulations, Iberia!!!
Wow girl! That’s awesome! See? Hard work is always rewarded 🤗
Do you have any new competitions coming up?