http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog/tis/19/tpod.html
Overall, I must give credit to both the teams for putting in a tremendous effort in their first year of volleyball competition. It takes a lot to just pick up a medal performance and these students certainly put their best foot forward to claim the honours that they received this weekend. There are certainly a ton of proud supporters of our Tigers and every last one of us couldn't be prouder of the effort put forth by both teams.
Outside of the matches themselves, I really enjoyed letting my guard down a little for these students. They are all fantastic young individuals and I loved getting the opportunity to share and learn about who they are. I know likewise that the students really loved the opportunity get to really know their teacher/coaches as real people. A trip with students are always filled with adventure and the adventures I had with these students on my first trip will honestly stay with me for as long as I'm alive.
Let me first say that I am overwhelmingly proud of my girls. I am not basing this statement on our performance alone but on the experiences we have faced this past weekend. Right from the start our girls demonstrated remarkable aspects of their personalities. The girls established an immediate bond with the teams from Hong Kong Academy (HKA) and this friendship blossomed to unimagined heights over the span of 4 days. By the time of our gold medal game against Xiamen International School (XIS) started, the HKA team were cheering louder for us than our own boys team and had come up with cheers for OUR team! While TIS and HKA faced off twice during the tournament and were competitors in the tournament, I thought it was a beautiful thing to see such a degree of respect that both schools' players showed for each other. When the teams parted ways earlier today, it was a drawn out and emotional affair; which showcased an amazing aspect of sports.
A tournament really doesn't allow for a lot of time to absorb, process, and reflect upon the results of previous performances. So, when through half a day of competition, we were 3-0 and assured a 1st vs 2nd playoff game, the girls were ecstatic with the results. What really helped build character for this team was a consistent need to perform under pressure. There really were no easy games (we only had 1 straight sets win) and the girls showed a degree of determination that I would never have expected at the beginning of the season. They were excited and sometimes sloppy with their play, but when it mattered most, every player on the team stepped up to deliver for their team. This attitude and determination is not something that you can teach but something that builds from the interactions between each of the player and the coaches.
The final day of competition exposed our team and myself so many important life lessons. In our semifinal game, my heart was beating so intensely I thought that my ribs would start to crack. Coaching an elimination game presents a unique level of stress. As a sports fan, you are allowed and even encouraged to showcase a full degree of emotions for the performance of your team. As a player there are certainly nerves and emotions but you have control of the outcome of the game. As a coach though, you have no direct influence on a match but the stress and emotions still bare down on you while you are expected to maintain a certain level of composure. I wanted my girls to win so incredibly badly, yet still had to do my job to ensure that they could fulfill that result.
A cynic would tell you that, sports are just fun and games meant to entertain. I beg to differ. Our tournament started with excitement but in the immediate aftermath of our finals loss, there was a definite sense of emotional pain. There were no dry eyes in the team huddle after the game. You could taste how incredibly badly the girls wanted the win. Before the game I told the girls to pour everything they had onto the court and leave nothing behind that they would regret and at the end, I knew without a doubt that every one of them had. But to put so much work yet falling just short of their goal is a gut-wrenching feeling that cannot be described but only experienced.
Yesterday was one of the most bittersweet days of my life. For me this tournament reaffirmed why I love sports. Yes we didn't win gold, but every last player on that team put in a titanic effort and hopefully woke up today feeling nothing but pride for their effort. Yet I'm sure the bitter taste of disappointment will linger for the girls. However, the beautiful thing is that bitter taste will provide the returning girls a drive that will push them to work and compete that much harder for next year. Beyond that, the girls have definitely gained an invaluable life lessons on the topic of determination, trust, and hard work.
It is not a stretch to tell you that a group of teenage girls inspired me over the span of this weekend. Again, words alone are not enough to describe how overwhelmingly proud I am of how far these girls have come in the development of not only their skills but their character in the span of 4 months. Yesterday, my girls didn't lose gold, they won silver. In the end, it was never about the result but rather it was culmination of an incredible chapter of the development of their identity. I'm sure however, my girls will tell you that this story has not yet reached a proper conclusion.
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| A weekend filled with nervousness, excitement, pain, tears, and smiles. These girls taught me some important life lessons. |
