Mr Turner, the Athletics Director at the Overseas School of Colombo reached out to me for a position as Middle School basketball coach. This was an opportunity I was glad to take as I had it last year. I was eager to retain the position as I also realized that it would be a useful addition to my DP CAS experience. After discussing the position further with Mr Turner I agreed on terms with him. I showed up on Monday directly after the conversation and met my fellow coaches. When I walked onto the court the first person I greeted was Coach Praneeth. My long time friend and coach from our SAISA basketball experience last year. He is an awesome guy and helped us reach 3rd place in last year’s tournament which was a record for the OSC basketball team. He told me he wasn’t going to be the coach but was just merely introducing his iimpact coaches to the school and me. The head coach was called Ramsey and his assistant coach, Diyon. They were very friendly and welcoming and I helped them navigate the school and also the kids. A lot of the kids knew me and I knew their names so I was a useful resource.
As time went on ME, Ramsey and Diyon kept hosting the training and developing the young athletes. Eventually we came up with an A and B team. We started running games with these said lineups during Wednesdays and Mondays with other local schools. This humbled our kids and also allowed them to continue developing, not just physically but mentally. This proved to be very effective and we grew to become one big family. As our last training approached I dreaded and welcomed it. It was fun and I was emotionally invested in the kids but I did need more time for SAISA and for my work so it was a positive change. Looking forward to doing the same thing next year and meeting the new bunch of kids.
In the picture below you can see me, the coaches and the team after a successful game against the Moire middle school team. I am in the back with a grey hoodie with assistant coach Diyon to my left in a black shirt and head coach Ramsey in a red shirt.