Congratulation to Year 10 student, Matilda who was awarded ‘Young Volunteer of the Year’ for the North West, by Basketball England, earlier this month.
Nominated by coaches and parents of children she coaches, Matilda has been recognised for her commitment and passion for coaching, along with the time she spends helping younger children to develop their love for the sport.
Matilda was introduced to basketball at the age of 8, when a Sports Coach visited her primary school, to give her a class a taster session. When she was in Year 8, her younger sibling’s team disbanded, and having a Level 1 basketball coaching badge, she offered to set up a team and has been overseeing their development ever since.
Image source: Basketball North West Facebook page
On winning the award, Matilda said:
“I had just arrived at training when I got the email to say that I had won the award, but I had no idea about it! I was ecstatic and ran across the court to tell my dad and to celebrate!”
Along with her commitments to studying at school, Matilda spends many of her evenings and weekends, playing and coaching, gaining an abundance of valuable life skills and experiences. She has set her sights on a future in the sport and recently took the opportunity to visit Loughborough University with school, through the Laurus Trust partnership, giving her a taste for what life is like in elite level sport.
Ed Haslam, Director of Sporting Excellence at the Laurus Trust commented:
“I would like to congratulate Matlida on winning her award. It’s a fantastic accolade and thoroughly deserved for her commitment to volunteering and to basketball. Sport is highly thought of across our Laurus Trust schools, along with participating as a player, we encourage students to coach and volunteer. Matilda is a role model to many of her peers!”
Matilda wants to continue playing and coaching, but aspires to go to the USA on basketball scholarship. She also wants to encourage more young people to get involved in coaching, as she feels that it gives you invaluable social skills, the ability to speak in front of people and a chance to help others.
More information about the Basketball England regional awards can be found here: www.basketballengland.co.uk/about/regions/north-west/