US sports envoys conduct basketball, leadership training for SL youth
COLOMBO – Two veteran US sportspersons, former National Basketball Association (NBA) star Stephen Howard and Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) star Astou Ndiaye, conducted training sessions for school-level basketball players and their coaches from across the country earlier this month.
The former NBA and WNBA stars are in Sri Lanka from June 8 to 14, as part of the US Sports Envoy program organized by the US Embassy in Colombo, in collaboration with Foundation of Goodness and IImpact Hoop Lab.
Apart from the training sessions conducted in the Northern, Southern, Eastern, Western, and Uva Provinces in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Basketball Federation, the Sports envoys also led workshops for the national basketball teams, including both male and female squads, and their coaches.
Together with staff from the US Embassy, they also renovated a girls’ changing room at a school in Colombo to help make basketball more accessible for young female athletes.
The visit also featured motivational talks focusing on leadership and embracing failure as a crucial step towards success, aimed at inspiring young athletes to value leadership, teamwork, and dedication, both on and off the basketball court.
Speaking at an exhibition game in Colombo for those who underwent intense coaching sessions with the Sports Envoys, Heidi Hattenbach, Counsellor for Public Affairs at the US Embassy, said the US Embassy was proud to contribute to empowering the next generation of leaders in Sri Lanka. She said the Sports Envoys, Stephen and Astou, had taught the youth about leadership and working together, including the importance of perseverance and learning from failure.
“They conveyed a powerful message: It’s not just about basketball; it’s about life. Embracing our failures equips us with the resilience and lessons to lead and succeed in any field,” she added.
Summarizing what basketball has taught her, Astou Ndiaye encouraged the Sri Lankan youth she met during her visit to “Have the courage to write your own life story because all is possible with hard work.”
Reflecting on his visit, Stephen Howard said, “If I hadn’t visited Sri Lanka, I would never have known about the immense pride and heart that all Sri Lankans exhibit. As much as I would like to think that I taught those who participated in the camps we administered, in the end, I learned just as much from them. I’m happy to say that being a Sports Envoy has allowed me to add new teammates and friends here in Sri Lanka. Thank you for the amazing hospitality everywhere we visited.”
The US Sports Envoy program, managed by the US Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, sends professional American athletes and coaches overseas to engage in sports-based programming. The envoys lead sports clinics, participate in community outreach activities, and engage youth in dialogues on the importance of leadership, teamwork, and respect for diversity. The program aims to promote mutual understanding and build positive relationships between the United States and other countries through sports.
-ENCL/US Embassy, Colombo
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