Hyperwoman for hire. The beauty of sports.
Each time we set off to a new area, I know it will be a different experience, but I cannot put a tag on where I will feel the difference. Either it's the kids' enthusiasm, the coaches' trainee energy, or the community or the area I will get to tour. Every year I look forward to the Score Beyond trips, where we travel to a select district for project implementation. Of course, it's always about sports and preaching its goodness beyond the confines of the city or the urban areas. In partnership with B1Gplay, Sports Uganda UK, Salisbury RFC, and Rhino Athletics Club (our rugby partners), we set off on a cold rainy morning from Kampala to Adjumani district in Northern Uganda. Little did we know that the last we would feel the cold rains of Kampala would be that morning for the next couple of days. Adjumani is very hot. It is home to the Madi and Nubian queens and kings of Northern Uganda, who are a community host to refugees.
I was amused by the Cock mounted high at the entrance into the town. Tradition has it that as you pass by this Cock you have to bow. A few minutes of meandering recklessly may land you in South Sudan. Adjumani is a small town seemingly dull during the day but industrious at night. The Score Beyond Tribe landed at the comfort of Samah guest house in the heart of the town. The next couple of days were definitely going to be tedious. Our goal was to profile 400 athletes, train 30 teachers in coaching and officiation of the games of rugby and basketball, and introduce the games to the community. Quite ambitious for our team in a town that has no basketball court. The district has three basketball courts far away in the refugee settlements. Football is the sports language of the district. As a basketball player, I am inclined to empathize with the opportunity this athletic community is missing. Come on, a kid at just fourteen years of age has a height of 160 cm and a wingspan of 170 cm. They have the potential to have an outstanding performance in the sport if given an opportunity.
Basketball training session.
The mornings passed quickly as we were fully engaged. The rugby program led by Coach Charles Mungoma and Leonard Lumbambula would get themselves busy under the scorching sun on the field. Through improvision, Coach Albert Aciko would be busy emphasizing a follow-through to the basketball coach trainees in the main sports hall with basketball rings drawn to create an impression of the court. Birungi Mariam would be spotted drawing the court and explaining the rules to the referee trainees. On the outside, kaptcha photography and ThatBoyMakobi media would be busy capturing the headshots of the profiled athletes. The profiling team would be busy taking note of the different metrics of the athletes. The involvement of volunteers remarkably showed the importance of sports volunteerism, a concept that has yet to be widely explored in our sports industry. Sarah Namale's height came in handy with measuring the vertical during profiling, and Darlene Tashobya's social media tricks kept the project live on the World Wide Web.
As I stated at the start, each trip is a whole different experience. It's always an opportunity to learn, unlearn, and create impact. "Has anyone here watched a rugby game?" A question I posed once in a while during the training sessions. Given my past involvement with the National team, I was humbled to be out, growing the game of rugby this time, unlike the other times I have always been about basketball. Two or three kids would shyly put up their hands and confidently talk about how they have watched the game on television. Precisely, out of 10 children, only two could shyly affirm that they have heard or seen the game of rugby. It's always at this point that the first basics are taught. I raise a rugby ball and tell them, "This is a rugby ball." Soon we started a few training sessions guided by Coach Leonard, and of course, they were all enthusiastic about touching the ball finally. The shape amused them. They all wanted to touch the ball down. Touching the ball down in rugby is a play that either starts the ball into play or at the try line (score line) to indicate that you have scored against your opponents. On day one, the kids are not entirely in their element. They are still taking in a hang of the sport. On day two, they literally send in two or three representatives to demand that the training session commence. They will probably say they learned to dribble yesterday, but you cannot blame them. It's a few days' program focusing on two sports. Hence they will most likely mix up what they are learning. A review of the previous day's learnings will come in handy. An introduction to a new concept will be appreciated at the end of the session. At least they all understand that they will have to pass the ball backward. Day three has come quite fast, but it's the final day, and the least we can do for these kids is have a guided tag game. However much they will do the opposite of what you taught them, you can't hold back your smile as you watch them joyfully incorporate netball into rugby. They are so happy as they pass the ball. All that matters is that they are having fun. By the end of the session, most of them have grasped the rule that if you are touched, you have to present the ball, so to hoard the ball to themselves, you will see some trying to dodge and sidestep their friends. Clearly, they don't know they have a bright future from what seems like a baby crawling stage.
It's the smiles that matter!
The rugby incident left me questioning how much we invest in the sports sector, especially at the grassroots level. Uganda has a robust rugby 7s team, and Internationally we have become a scare to other nations. It's interesting to know that most National Level and National Team rugby players are from Northern Uganda. What happened to goodwill in our communities? Anyway, not my war. Glad that the Score Beyond Leadership Team stepped up to reach out to this refugee and host community of Adjumani to spread the game of rugby. Basketball's reach in the region is similar. The town lacks a basketball court, and the three available courts are deep in the refugee settlement camps. The basketball trainers deserve a National Hero's medal for the work well done. By day three, most of the kids at least had a basketball vocabulary on their tongues. A couple of times, you could pass by a group of kids talking about how the game is played. "I have seen some men jump and throw the ball down the net," another boy tries to demonstrate how the game is played with an imaginary dribble as the rest watch. What a beautiful sight!
The final day is always hearty. The kids and the trainees consistently ask if you will ever come back. They want to know what your future plan is. I also learned that for this particular community, it is quite common for organizations or individuals to come and carry out charity or program-based activities for a short time with little impact on the community and disappear in the limelight. This has particularly made the community doubt the authenticity of the programs and, in turn, subsequently created a short-foresighted community. Interesting narrative. We had to say our last farewells, but we established a strong relationship with stakeholders responsible for the growth of the games in the schools.
We made it to the fish cages.
What is a Score Beyond trip without touring the region? I had never laughed out of fear as much as I did that evening. We board a fiberglass engine-driven boat in the Albert Nile tributary, which pours into the River Nile. This was a regular boat ride through the swamp to the fish site for the locals on board with us. For the team doing this for the first time, it was a story of fear and worried if we would make it to the fish site or back. The fear soon became a joke. "Coach Mavita?" calls Makobi, "if the boat was sinking and you had an opportunity to save someone, who would you save between Darlene and Namirimu?" Honestly, this is the least time we should have these thoughts, but my mind is also crowded with the whole fear of a hippopotamus jumping out of the swamps. Finally, we made it to the fish farm—an incredible wonder of agriculture. The fish farm is caged and planted, kept afloat with the help of drums in the clear waters. You can take a walk on the farm. Quite interesting. Unlike a poultry farm where you will see the chicken immediately upon arrival, the cages must be opened in fish farming. The nets are tilted at an angle to give a glimpse of the fish as they dive to the opposite end, tilted in the water. It was wholesome watching the fish.
Interestingly, with all our screams and worry that we might drown, two young boys, aged 8 - 12, rowed their boat close to the cage to get a good view of who we were. We were equally intrigued by these two young boys that were coming from playing football across the river distributary. It's a fascinating world out there. Tour Uganda!
Sports is indeed a universal language. If you can't get a sport to play this coming year, at least get a sport to support. Use your obtained knowledge of the game to impact the next generation.
Manzo opkwosi Adjumani
Merry Christmas!
Pictures by Kaptcha Photography and ThatBoyMakobi. Merry Christmas!
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