Born in the USA but representing Switzerland at the Olympics. The 16-year-old figure skater Alexia Paganini finished in 21st place at the Olympic Games in Pyeongchang. Although she lives in New York and has already seen much of the world, she calls Switzerland “home”.
My sport: Figure skating has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. My mother took my brothers, Kevin and Mario, and me to a local ice rink when I was just two years old. My brothers play ice hockey, and I’m a figure skater. We all have a passion for sport.
My Olympics: Representing Switzerland at the Olympic Games was an incredible experience. I feel honoured and extremely grateful. My most precious memory is entering the official Olympic ice rink for the first time. That’s when I realised that it was for real and actually happening. I’m here at the Olympic Games representing Switzerland, my home nation.
My Switzerland: I’ve always felt Swiss. I am very proud to be Swiss. Almost my entire family lives there. We’ve got family in Weesen, Solothurn, Zurich and Poschiavo, and my grandmother lives in Brusio. I love visiting Switzerland – it’s my home.
My heart: I can’t see into the future, but I could imagine living in Switzerland at some point. I’m often in Switzerland, and the very first thing I look for is a good raclette restaurant. I adore raclette!
The full interview was published on swissinfo.ch, the online service of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation, which is available in ten languages. Do you live abroad too? Add the tag #WeAreSwissAbroad to your photos on Instagram.
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