WEEK #12: MELODY L.

Please tell us a little bit about yourself.

Growing up I have been involved in several sports such as basketball, volleyball and track and field. However, as I got older basketball was the one sport that really stuck with me. Thus far I have played basketball competitively for 12 years at the rep team level all the way to collegiate level. I have played in AAU tournaments across the US and have had the opportunity to play basketball in different places. In elementary and high school, I was also heavily involved in track and field particularly shot put and discus. I managed to attend back-to-back OFSAA central track and field meets. Most recently I have gotten really involved in powerlifting. I competed in my first powerlifting meet in February 2020, as it has been my goal for the past 3 years to finally get the confidence to compete in one. Although I am really new to the sport it is quite different from basketball and it is something that I take a lot of pride in because the sport solely relies on you and the effort you put in, whereas basketball is more of a team sport which requires a collaborative effort.

What inspired you to participate in sport? 

Initially, as a kid I saw sport as an opportunity to just play a lot of different games and I did not quite understand the competitive aspect of sport. However, I had an older cousin who was heavily involved in basketball and happened to be coaching. So, he took me to one of the group sessions. This happened to be a session that only contained boys and I was the only girl at the time. We did some drills and scrimmaged, I had a nose bleed and it was one of the most embarrassing days of my life. But for some reason I was amazed by the idea that if I continued to practice my craft I could get better, and so although it was one of the worst days of my life I decided to go back and have played for the past 12 years.

What is a barrier you have faced in sport? How did you overcome the barrier? 

A barrier I have faced in sport are encountering people or coaches who have told me that I was not good enough. This was something I have encountered several times even now that I have experience in the collegiate level. I overcame this barrier by having faith in myself. This meant that I believed I was better than what coaches told me and I used this as motivation to spend an extra hour after every practice or training session to continue to fine tune my skills regardless of my circumstances. I have just used that to fuel myself to push harder. Sometimes when people tell me these things, I overcome them by simply showing them what I can do and prove them wrong. If I can’t prove them wrong then I use that as a new goal to reach next time.

What advice do you have for parents, coaches or sport administrators to encourage or improve sport for females? 

The biggest advice I have for parents, coaches or sport administrators is to advocate for female sport. For example, growing up women in sport were never good enough or never exciting enough. This stays true to females even now despite the changes women have overcome. Part of advocating for female sport as a parent, coach or sport administrator is ensuring that women are provided with equal opportunity to play and that young women have the basketball team many of them are eager to play on. This is also providing them with the support such as spreading the word during their games and getting their peers to come out and watch, not for the show, but to show them support and that they are valued just as much.

What is a quote that motivates you?     

“6 months of focus can put you 5 years ahead in life, and 5 years of focus can give you 10 years of success.”