Philippine ice skating princess Issai Villafuerte is inching closer to her dream of earning the country’s first stint in the Winter Olympics after she was accepted to train with the Russian national Olympic team under the tutelage of Olympic medalist Maria Butryskaya.

Villafuerte flew back to the Philippines on Thursday morning after successfully passing the month-long evaluation process of the Russian ice skating national team. She arrived onboard a Royal Dutch Airways flight with her parents, Bong and Fe Maria Villafuerte.

The 14-year old skater, who practices at the SM Southmall Ice Skating Center, gained prominence in the ice skating community after winning a cache of gold medals in the US circuit during her first attempt a couple of years ago.

Last year, the teenager brought home 12 gold medals, six silvers and two bronzes from the USFSA 2008 Competition.

To help make her aspiration of earning for the country its first gold medal in the Winter Olympics, Villafuerte’s parents had looked for the best training they could get for their daughter and found their way to Russia to try out for the Russian National Team.

The girl recounted how tough it was to get accepted by the team as she had to undergo six hours of qualifying sessions every day for an entire month.

At the same time, she also had to go on a diet to control her weight.

Villafuerte said the process of getting accepted was so tough that only a handful of Russian nationals are accepted.

“All the sacrifices that I made were all worth it! I’m so honored to be the first Filipino to get accepted and train with Russia’s National Olympic Team.”

Now that Issai has been accepted by the team, she will spend a few months in the Philippines to rest before returning to Russia and go training full-time in preparation for the 2014 Winter Games to be held in Sochi, Russia.