Stories

March 13, 2026

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At just 20 years old, Alex Eala is emerging as one of the most exciting new forces in women’s tennis. The Filipina athlete has captured global attention after defeating some of the sport’s most established champions.

In a sport historically dominated by Western powers, Eala’s rapid climb is a major milestone for Asian representation in tennis. Her growing success signals a shift in the global landscape of the sport.

Image Source: SCMP

A Breakthrough That Turned Heads in Miami

Eala’s breakthrough moment came at the 2025 Miami Open, where she entered the tournament as a wildcard. Few expected the young Filipina to make a deep run, but she quickly stunned the field with a series of commanding victories.

During the tournament, Eala defeated multiple Grand Slam champions, including Iga Świątek, Madison Keys, and Jeļena Ostapenko. She later added a win over Coco Gauff, further proving she could compete against the very best in the sport.

Her run to the semifinals became one of the biggest stories of the tournament. It pushed her ranking into the WTA Top 100 and introduced her to a much wider global audience.

Image Source: DZRH

Climbing Into the WTA Top 50

Following her breakout performance, Eala continued to build momentum throughout the season. Strong results in several tournaments helped her steadily climb the rankings and establish herself among the sport’s rising contenders.

By the end of the year, Eala officially entered the WTA Top 50, becoming the first Filipina player to reach that milestone. The achievement marked a historic moment not only for Philippine tennis but also for Southeast Asian representation in the sport.

More than just a personal accomplishment, her rise is inspiring a new generation of young athletes across Asia. As she continues to compete on the world stage, Alex Eala’s journey shows how talent, discipline, and opportunity can reshape the future of global tennis.

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Image Source: CBS

News

Eric Kim To Lead CBS Entertainment and Studios As New Executive Vice President

Eric Kim has been recently promoted as CBS’ Executive Vice President for Current Programs after serving as Senior Vice President in the same company where he worked for 11 years.

He succeeds Amy Resisenbach who has just advanced as President of CBS Entertainment.

Kim will now be functioning in his new position to oversee the primetime and daytime programs.

Reisenbach mentioned in Deadline that in working with Kim for more than ten years, she has always been amazed by the latter’s remarkable expertise in programming, in working with showrunners, and in dealing with people whom he works with.

While still the SVP, Kim supervised comedy and drama series production in Blue Bloods, FBI: Most Wanted, FBI: International, and CSI.

Kim had a strong background in the field working in live-action series for Nickelodeon and Teen Nick for two years and was the then-VP for Current Programming at the CW for 3 years.

Moreover, Kim has been a part of the creative team that launched the new network when The WB and UPN networks merged as well as the executive at UPN from 2004 to 2006.

Kim entered the world of the entertainment industry by working for Jonathan Demme on the Academy Award-winning Philadelphia. 

He is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania where he took a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature.

CBS TV Studios President David Stapf said, “His (Eric’s) leadership has earned the trust and respect of both the industry and his colleagues at the Studio and Network. As Eric steps into this new role, I’m looking forward to seeing the impact he makes both within the creative community and on our series that are enjoyed by global audiences.”

Image Source: Tammy Sun Linkedin

Stories

Through Personal Experience, Tammy Sun Starts Up Carrot Fertility Company To Help Women Start Families

At 34, Tammy Sun went looking for egg fertilizing services as she thought of starting a family of her own someday. But in her quest, she, unfortunately, found out that she has “premature ovarian failure.”

The mysterious disorder indicated negative effects on Tammy’s fertility that she had to go through several egg-freezing cycles which cost her $40,000.

Working in Evernote tech company that did not have fertility treatment benefits, the medication was very costly for her.

With this in mind, Sun put up Carrot Fertility, a fertility care provider, in 2016.

Carrot Fertility partnered with different companies to include fertility services in their health coverage where employees can avail of egg freezing, IVF, adoption, pregnancy, menopause treatments, and others.

In MSNBC, the CEO and founder stated that “The company was born out of a desire to make sure that every single person, regardless of their age, their sex, their sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, race or geography would have equal access to high-quality care.”

Not only did the service provider address women’s concerns but also men’s as according to her, fertility is a human health issue for both sexes.

A year after Carrot’s onset, it has already acquired over $200 million in investments from first-class firms and is now a partner of above 800 companies.

Supporting millions of workers, including their families, Carrot is set to process claims worth $500 million.

Tammy also revealed that 95% of their clients remain in their respective jobs because of Carrot.

Unlike other businesses which declined during the pandemic, more than a three-fold increase in the use of the platform was observed during the time and up until now as many availed of mental and emotional health services.

Many companies partnered with Carrot to encourage employees to stay especially during the Great Resignation period.

Now, Carrot Fertility is the leading global platform for fertility healthcare and family-forming benefits.

Image Source: Richie Fernandez Facebook

News

Filipino Family Grows COVID Financial Aid From Government Through Fishball Sauce Business

Filipino Richie Fernandez, a new entrepreneur, was able to launch a business venture that now generates a five-digit income with the help of $100 in financial aid from the government.

During the height of the pandemic lockdowns, Richie and his family chose to grow the help by opening Manong’s Fishball Sauce, “We thought of how to grow and prolong the money,” Richie said.

With his family’s fondness of eating street food fish balls but at the same time considering the limitations posed by the pandemic at that time, the family decided to sell bottled fishball sauce so people could just enjoy it at home with their own-cooked fish balls.

The modest family business prospered through hard work and perseverance. Not only do they sell their product in the Philippines but they now also export to Japan, Australia, Austria, and the US.

Image Source: The Sacramento Bee

News

Asian American Community Is Prospering In Folsom Sacramento County

The number of Asian American immigrants in Folsom multiplied five-fold from 2000 until last year as found out by the US Census Bureau.

Among them are Chalamcherla of India, Steven Wang of China, and Marcus Yasatuke of Japan.

51-year-old Chalamcherla long decided to come to Folsom after falling in love with the city while attending the birthday celebration of a friend’s son, but it wasn’t until 2006 that he actually did so after spending two years in Singapore and the Bay Area.

Nearly ten years after arriving in the country, Steven Wang, who is currently Folsom’s city attorney, became a citizen.

Back then, it was hard for tourists to enter the US but Wang, together with her brother and mother, swiftly passed the immigration after saying that they would be visiting Disneyland, the only place he knew. 

Wang, who is now a lieutenant colonel, has been a member of the US Army Reserve since 2004. During that time, many of his fellow soldiers were losing their lives while serving, and Wang felt in danger.

Because of this, he worked in Folsom city before finishing the necessary time to serve in his Afghanistan deployment, and he told The Sacramento Bee, “I don’t know if every company is like this, but Folsom has been quite supportive of the military.”

Additionally, in 2003, Marcus Yasutake, 45, moved to Folsom with his wife after receiving job offers from Placerville and Roseville. They were able to reside there and raise a family of three children.

Communications director Christine Brainerd of the city of Folsom said that Asian Americans are likely attracted to the area on the same note as why many citizens choose to call Folsom home.

The head of the Sacramento Asian Pacific Chamber of Commerce’s economic development team believes that the tech-based companies in Folsom may be one factor for the recent increase in Asian residents.

Marcus cited the excellent school system in Folsom as one of the reasons why he came there, whilst Chalamcherla claimed that technology plays a significant role in the city’s increasing Asian population.

Racial discrimination is far from nonexistent in Folsom. That’s why Chalamcherla urges other Asians to immerse them in Asian culture.