Premier Volleyball League stars Nicole Tiamzon and Kathy Bersola teamed up to help around 40 kids take that first step towards their volleyball dream in the first leg of ABS-CBN S+A’s “Heroes Camp Year 3” last Saturday.
The duo from BanKo Perlas Spikers guided participants in drills and gave motivational talks in the volleyball clinic, which was held at the San Andres Gymnasium in Cainta, Rizal.
The event was extra special for Tiamzon, who grew up in the area before she was discovered as a high schooler and suited up for the UP Lady Maroons in the UAAP. She told her young kababayans to put in the hard work to reach their goal, like she continues to do as an athlete.
“An important thing to remember, as a player and as a person: never stop learning, never stop practicing, and never give up. Just like you kids, I started from scratch here. We had to do extra training right after every practice back in high school to really sharpen our skills and competitive edge,” she said.
ABS-CBN Integrated Sports head Dino Laurena, who was also present during the clinic, believes that the success stories of athletes like Tiamzon and Bersola can inspire the kids in the clinic not only to aim higher in their chosen sport but also to be responsible and disciplined people.
“The Heroes Camp, for us, is a great opportunity to not only discover talent at the grassroots level, but to keep the kids off the streets and other influences, and watch them blossom down the line. Who knows, maybe a handful of them will be playing collegiate volleyball in the future and will be household names like the current crop of volleyball stars,” he said
A partnership with ABS-CBN Lingkod Kapamilya Foundation, Inc., the “Heroes Camp” started in 2016 with a series of basketball clinics done by Coach Koy Banal aimed at teaching the fundamentals of the sport at the grassroots level and imparting to children positive values they can apply both in basketball and in life. Last year, ABS-CBN S+A partnered with Heroes Volleyball Program (HVP) for a series of volleyball clinics, wherein more than 200 children were given an opportunity to learn from the experts. In Cainta, representing HVP were UP Men’s volleyball team setter Carlo Cabatingan, longtime national team mainstay Ers Iratay, UP volleyball assistant coach Kate De Lara, and DLSU’s Timothy Papa.
Aside from volleyball lessons and special moments with their idols, the kids also went home with certificates of participation and enjoyed free ice cream treats from Creamline, the brand behind the Cool Smashers that currently play with Tiamzon’s and Bersola’s BanKo Perlas Spikers at the PVL Open Conference. The next “Heroes Camp Year 3” leg is slated on November 10 at San Juan City.
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