CHATEAUBELAIR (St. Vincent and the Grenadines) – A great deal of a Federation's success in developing and popularizing a sport is related to the joint efforts of clubs and community organizations in its nation.

In the case of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, one of those efforts is the recently-established Northern-Boys Academy, which focuses on teaching basketball to boys and girls in the island with clinics and camps that have been taking place for two years in the court of Petit Bordel Secondary School.

In its first edition in 2018, the Northern-Boys Academy lasted two weeks. Nonetheless, this year, and with the Federation's support, the event lasted more than a month – from July 13 to August 24. With the goal of giving continuity to the project, once the back to school process is underway, the academy will start sessions every Saturday throughout the year.

Established by two former players, Otmar Marshall and Oswald Hooper, the Academy’s foundation is the needs that its creators faced during their youth: having people teach them the fundamentals and guide them in the process during the basic learning stages.

“This camp began because of the love that I feel for basketball and that I really never had the fundamental help when I was young,” said Marshall to FIBA.basketball. “So last year we had the initiative of going to the community, inviting kids and start to teach them the game of basketball.”

The organization has been backed by the President of the basketball federation, Wayne Williams.

Besides basketball, one of the main interests of the Northern-Boys Academy is to foster leadership in its participants. This is an aspect that, according to Marshall, should be given the utmost importance in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

"This [interest] came because of the lack of youth leadership in the community. I felt like there were many young people out there that have the ability to be great leaders, but they first have to work on being better people themselves, and then being leaders.”

Through physical and athletic activities, the Academy also seeks to impact the social aspects of the community, creating not only good players but also good human beings that contribute positively to their surroundings, just as their founder, Marshall, explains.

“Being a basketball player isn't just about playing, it’s also about being great human beings who are dedicated and disciplined.”

FIBA