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by SONJA BJELLAND B


efore Leah Keiser takes to the ice, her brothers let her know they support her. A text message or a quick call may be all that schedules permit, but when they have a crew race or an NFL game, she does the same. It hasn’t been easy managing a family competing at elite levels in varied sports on opposite coasts, but the Keisers make it work. “My family is very goal-driv-


en, very hard-working,” Leah says. “Tat kind of never-give-up atti- tude and keep going.” At Leah’s debut this fall on the


ISU Junior Grand Prix Series in Turkey, she rallied from third place after the short program to win the gold medal. She went on to qualify for this month’s Junior Grand Prix Final in Sochi, Russia.


Late last season, she captured the junior title at the Internation- al Challenge Cup in Te Hague, Netherlands. She’s the 2010 U.S. novice champion and the 2008 U.S. juvenile champion. Leah’s sister, Emily, competes


at the novice level. Tey have their sights set on more podium appear- ances, with Leah’s set at the highest level.


“Of course going to the Olym-


pics, I’ve been dreaming of that since I was little so that’s definite- ly my long-term goal,” she says. “I know it’s something everybody says, but it’s something I hope I can work toward and make happen.” Leah, 15, grew up watching


her older brother Tomas train as a high school athlete, and then Stan- ford University football player and now a defensive end with the Caro- lina Panthers. “It’s been inspiring: It’s easy to


see how much dedication and hard work it takes,” Leah says. “Even my brother over the holidays would be doing homework and going to the gym.” In her younger years, Leah and her sister lived down the street from


10 DECEMBER 2012


she needs to jump through to get to that goal,” he says.


A bit of genetic athleticism


doesn’t hurt either. Tony is an Army Special Forces veteran and Leah and


Leah Keiser awaits her scores in the kiss and cry in Germany with coach John Nicks.


where their other siblings lived with their mother. For her training, she and her mother and sister relocated to Southern California. Her father still lives and works in Pennsylvania but takes long weekends to the West Coast every other weekend. “It’s hard now because all of us


are on season,” Leah said of seeing her family. But her sister is with her every day at the rink. At 13, Emily has ex- panded to playing volleyball while also training for skating about an hour and a half a day. Both girls go to school through an independent study program offered by the Pla- centia-Yorba Linda School District. “It’s easier to have another set


of eyes watching,” Leah says of hav- ing her sister around. “When we’re running programs, it’s motivation to have someone there who’s watch- ing. It’s like having a training mate there with you all the time.” Te siblings attribute many


of their achievements to the advice and encouragement of their father, Tony Keiser, and dedication of their mother, Betty Keiser. Tony Keiser says his family has


long been driven, and he’s always instilled in his children to not fear failure. Some of his five children have taken that philosophy with their athletic endeavors while others have pursued academia and profes- sional careers. He wanted them to try different sports or classes with the understanding that they were trying to find something that fit them. In addition to Leah and Emi-


ly’s skating and Tomas being in the NFL, son Alex is on the crew team at Boston University and daugh- ter Stephanie graduated last spring from Penn State and works in hu- man resources. “It’s not a drive or work ethic or success, but to figure out what your thing is,” he says while watch- ing Leah practice. “And once you discover your bliss, it’s very easy to be affected and it becomes a natural act.”


He also focuses his children on


the long-term goals and the higher reason for the hard work. “If she can see herself on the


podium every morning when she wakes up, practice becomes a hoop


Emily’s mother, Betty, was a gym- nast, ballerina and collegiate volley- ball player in her native China. Beyond the athleticism, Betty said she sees her daughters as high- ly organized and willing to get up and exercise when it’s hard to keep going. She wants to give her daugh- ters opportunities she did not have growing up in China. Selected for gymnastics, she didn’t want to do it. “Te worst thing for a person in their life is to say, ‘What if?’” she says. “It’s a hard thing to do but if that’s what they want that’s what they want.”


Te siblings encourage each


other more than compete with each other, she said. And they all have some natural ability. She saw it in Leah early on.


“I took her to the grocery store


and I’d turn around and she’d be climbing on the shelves,” she says. Tomas said he’s proud of his sisters and sees them skate when schedules permit. He was finishing his degree at Stanford University when they were in San Jose, Calif.,


Emily Keiser displays her elegance and grace.


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