Kayla Gabriel’s Journey on the Ice

Kayla Gabriel has a goal: to be a national champion figure skater. Watch her videos and you will see that she has extraordinary talent for a 13 year-old. But Kayla isn’t just any 13 year-old, as you will discover when you read her story. Team Kayla was put together to help Kayla reach her goal, and we invite you to join us in supporting her story.

By becoming a part of Team Kayla, you will be contributing to a success story that transcends figure skating and sports. Share in her achievement, and feel the inspiration that drives her every day.

Like many accomplished figure skaters, Kayla Gabriel brings grace, skill, athleticism and passion to the ice. She performs with deceptive ease, leaping and spinning so effortlessly it’s as if she were channeling the very music to which she skates.

And it’s no wonder: Kayla is a determined, strong-willed individual who puts her heart and soul into everything she does. She has something that can’t be taught, what her coach calls "the heart of a champion". There are many talented skaters, of course, all of whom might make similar claims. But Kayla is different than most. Kayla is deaf.



Diagnosed when she was one, Kayla’s parents were devastated. How could this be? How would she be able to function in a hearing world?

At age two she had surgery and received a Cochlear implant , and after years of Audio Verbal Therapy, she surprised everyone by becoming one of the most talkative people you will ever meet. It was the first indication that she wasn't going to let her deafness stand in her way.

She started taking figure skating lessons when she was nine, and from the first time she stepped on the ice it was obvious she was something special. Her grandmother had gotten her a skating aid to hold on to, but Kayla was having no part of it. She pushed it away and did it on her own.

She was enrolled in "learn to skate" classes, where she was bumped up to each level faster than the other kids. Her father, a Canadian, wanted her to play hockey, but Kayla wanted to figure skate . The family hired a coach for private lessons, and her natural talent and drive took it from there.

Kayla’s dedication and determination stops her from nothing. Today she maintains a rigid skating schedule that has her on the ice before and after school every day, starting at 6 a.m. and ending at 4:30. On Saturdays she spends more than ten hours training, and on Mondays and Fridays she additionally has ballet.

For nearly two years, Kayla has been training with an elite level coach . This level of training is expensive, and her family has had to make sacrifices to help fund the effort . But they know this opportunity is precious, and a rare talent like Kayla’s must be nurtured if she is to achieve her great potential.