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2 local roller skaters headed to international competition

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By ERIC HORCHY

The Suncoast News

Published: October 30, 2009

PORT RICHEY - In the realm of competitive roller figure skating, the stage gets no bigger and no brighter than it does during the annual world championships, which will be held this year in Freiburg, Germany.

Of the 42 skaters representing the United States from Nov. 10-21, Erica Sheley and Siobhan Boismier train here with the Florida Skating Academy at Spinnations Skating Center. They are two of eight Florida representatives on this year's U.S. World Team roster.

Sheley, a 17-year-old high school senior from Sarasota, is making her first trip as a member of the national team. Boismier, 29, will travel to Freiburg, a city of 217,000 in southwestern Germany, with the invaluable experience of competing at last year's world championships in Taiwan.

"It's always been a goal," Sheley said of her selection. "Growing up I'd watch the older kids and I wanted to be just like them, so it's definitely something that made me work harder."
Sheley will skate in junior individual figure competitions. Boismier performs with partner Eric Hadley of Orlando in pairs. .

Both Boismier and Sheley said they are excited for the opportunity, and Boismier said she thinks the 2008 experience in Taiwan will be give her a boost.

"I think it is just because we have a little more of an idea of what to expect, how they run the competition and just seeing the other competitors," she said.

Boismier and Hadley have been skating together for about five years and placed seventh in the international competition last year.

Though it's Sheley's first year as a team member, she has experience in international events. Last May she skated in the junior competition at the German Cup.

Before either skater gets to Europe this November, they need to clear a hurdle: financing the trip.

For information on how to donate, call Angela Serini, publicist for Florida Skating Academy, at (727) 207-4071.

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