At first, it was difficult. Basketball has many more rules, like you’re not allowed to walk with the ball. And when your friends also shout that you’re playing the wrong sport... But it changed quickly because when I was 8, I was asked to play for the Under 12-4 team. Since then, I’ve kept playing basketball, and now I play for the teams 18-1 and 19-2.

I’m currently in the 4th year of my vwo (Dutch pre-university education), and my week consists of basketball, school, and church. It’s exhausting to combine everything, especially to get all the homework done between practices. On Sundays, I go to church. I also try to read the Bible every day and write down what I understood from the passages.

Faith is important to me, and I certainly don’t hide it. My friends and teammates know that if they have any questions, they can always ask me. I share how I see things.
It also helps on the court. Although it’s very different in which ways. Sometimes it gives me motivation, and sometimes it gives me peace. When we’re behind, I think of a few verses from the Bible and draw strength from them to keep going.

I AM A CREATIVE 3x3 LEADER

Sergio often organized activities through Unites here in Amstelveen, and I would often participate in the 3x3 tournaments. Back then, Ray was my coach at MBCA and asked me if I wanted to join the Leader Course.
I expected the course to be very serious, almost like school. But we also had a lot of fun and did cool things. I mainly learned to use my creativity. For example, in an exercise where we had to come up with drills to practice certain skills. We put a player with a blindfold and a ball on the court and had the rest of the team give instructions from the sideline. It was a new way of listening to your team, understanding what someone means, and realizing that everyone needs instructions in different ways.

Currently, I coach the 14-2 team and still use that creativity. Especially when my co-coach sometimes has to cancel, and he had prepared the session. Then we start with the standard warm-up, and I improvise the best way to fill the rest of the practice.

I WANT TO BE ABLE TO SAY THAT I GAVE IT MY ALL

Basketball has given me a lot of self-confidence. During the Leader Course, I really stepped out of my comfort zone. When I meet people now, I approach them, introduce myself, and ask questions. I’m also much clearer when giving feedback. In the past, it felt rude to tell a teammate what they did wrong. Now I know that we can improve through feedback and become a better team. I even enjoy giving people tips and coaching them.

In the coming years, I will definitely keep playing basketball. I hope to make it to the 19-1 team and join the Eredivisie. I’ll keep training and we’ll see how far I can go. Most of all, I want to be able to say afterwards that I gave it my all and did my best.
What I want to share with people reading this? The Bible verse Philippians 4:13: I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.