NEVZA player from London Lynx gets a scholarship at Harvard.
Xuanthe Nguyen a volleyball player at London Lynx Volleyball Club has just found out that he will be going to college in America next year, not only that he will be going to Harvary, one of the top colleges in the states.
Xuan was shy child and found it difficult to make friends until he found Volleyball. He said that Volleyball changed his life, the club was warm and welcoming, a great environment for a 13 year old to develop, grow and make friends.
Xuan tells us his story
“Everyone has a unique story as to why volleyball clubs are precious to us.
It was almost four years ago when I discovered my volleyball club. Before my first session, I was an introverted child with very little self-confidence. Having just transferred schools, I developed anxiety and found it challenging to socialise with my peers, who had friendships formed from many years before.
Enduring every day by bottling up my emotions, I needed a place to de-stress and that’s when I started volleyball at my local sports club - which was a community that welcomed me with open arms.
There, I began to grow in self confidence and learnt to interact with people of all sorts of backgrounds; these traits transferred into my everyday life. I began to believe in myself. I even started looking forward to school each morning. On top of that, in my sports club, I had the privilege of meeting the most supportive, like-minded people, and each session emanated an unbelievably positive and friendly atmosphere. In my brief time with the club, I truly understood the value of hard work, resilience and goal setting.
I managed to join the U17 national team within two years, won gold for London in an U17 Inter-Regional tournament, and my most proud accomplishment with which I feel my club helped me achieve, was getting accepted into Harvard University.
Without my club, I would not be half the person I am today. I would not have received the unwavering support from my coach who convinced me that I am capable of achieving great things. I would not have had a safe space to unwind whilst doing something that I love, and I would not have the gained key skills required to even have a chance of getting accepted into an Ivy league school.
Which is why my friends and I feel it is imperative to guarantee the safety of local clubs post pandemic - we want everyone to have the same opportunities we did.”