US NCAA Division I Coaches, bilib sa talento ng Pinoy

NAPAHANGA ng mga junior tennis players na sumabak sa DreamBig Gold Series Tennis Camp kamakailan sa Manila Polo Club ang mga nagsilbing trainor/coach mula sa U.S. NCAA Division I.

Hindi naitago nina Ezequiel Gils ng Rice University, Rob Raines ng Cornell University at Jesse Frieder ng Boston University, ang paghanga sa ipinakitang talent, determinasyon at character ng mgabatang Pinoy netter na dumalo sa isang linggong training camp.

Kabuuang 21 junior tennis players ang nabigyan ng pagkakataon na masanay at mabigyan ng programa ng mga batikang American coach.

“Talent is everywhere. I’ve seen a lot of players who can play at a really high level if they just commit to spending time on the court and practicing. I can’t believe I’ve been missing out on the Philippines in terms of tennis. It’s a place a lot of coaches are missing out on and it’s certainly a place that I’ll keep in mind as I’m recruiting,” pahayag ni Raines.

Napabilib ng mga local campers ang international coaches sa kanilang marubdob na pagnanasa na matuto at masanay.

“The players here are very coachable, which leads me to believe that if they to end up in any of our teams, we could help them reach for the sky because they’re open to learning and improving,” sambit ni Frieder.

Kabilang sa pumukaw sa atensyon ng mga American coach ang 16-anyos na si Sebastien Lhuiller, anak ni gymnast champion at Olympian Bea Lucero.

Iginiit ng mga coach na higit pa sa talento ang kailangan upang maabot ngmga batang camper ang kompetitibong level sa world class tournament. Ngunit, sa ipinamalas na character ng mga campers, madali nilang mapagtatagumpayan ang adhikain.

“It’s more mindset than perhaps even resources. Having someone who is hungry as a child—and I mean hungry to learn— is crucial. We need somebody who wants to be better today than they were yesterday regardless of what their floor is, in terms of talent and athletic ability,” pahayag ni Gils.

Iginiit ni Akshay Maliwal, Founder and CEO of DreamBig Events, na sinimulan niya ang programa sa tennis, golf at soccer upang mabigyan ng pagkakataon ang mga Pinoy junior players na mapataas ang kalidad ng talento at makapaglaro sa US Division 1 universities.