Guelph-Humber students explain how playing sports teach players lessons they can carry for their entire lives
Whether it’s slam dunking on the basketball court, scoring a hat trick on the hockey rink, or hitting a spike in volleyball, playing sports can elevate and round out an education, and empower those who play at any age.
“With sports, it's all transferable skills you learn,” first-year Psychology student Ivontae Cambronne said, who plays on the Humber Hawks’ men’s rugby team and has also played soccer since he was around 11 years old.
As the Official Education Partner of the NBA G League team, the Raptors 905, the University of Guelph-Humber (U of GH) believes in the power of sport and how passion for the game can uplift youth and young adults alike. This partnership focuses on building a strong footprint of awareness, access to university education, and career development in the local community.
Sharing that belief, Cambronne said playing sports has taught him how to better communicate with others (such as with teammates) and showed him how to be consistent and disciplined (practicing and improving his gameplay). For instance, being part of a team, even back in high school, helped him dial-in to always complete assignments on time – part of the discipline he learned from being on a sports team, where you’re required to show up on time for practice and for games.
Second-year Media and Communication Studies student Meghan Aucoin said playing on the Humber Hawks’ women’s rugby 7’s team, as well as playing hockey since she was four years old, taught her accountability, and sharpened her organization and time management skills.
“If you want to play, you have to do your homework. You have to study. You have to keep yourself motivated for education first because it’s ‘student athlete.’ Student always comes first,” Aucoin said. Schools tend to require student athletes to keep up a certain grade point average to stay on the team.
Furthermore, the biggest lesson that playing team sports taught Aucoin is understanding how to function on a team. She said she takes this skill into the classroom for group assignments, and as an aspiring public relations professional, she will bring this skill into the workplace to be a great collaborator.
But aside from shaping student athletes into well-rounded students and future professionals, sports have the power to inspire people.
Cambronne may be a first-year student at U of GH, but he’s three years out of high school. When he graduated from secondary school, he played soccer in the Ontario Soccer League throughout the COVID-19 pandemic because he wasn’t sure what to do next, but he knew he loved to play.
He attributed making the decision to study at U of GH to following the joy that playing soccer brought him and staying committed to that.
“Playing soccer channelled my mind to be more goal oriented. I'd say [playing sports] empowers you because I'm here after three years,” he said. “When playing soccer during my three years off, I said, ‘I want more for myself.’ It empowers you to chase your goals. If you have the passion for it, then you'll keep going with it. And then that's how you'll make certain decisions.”
That roaring passion was present at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena on Dec. 5 in the form of cheering youths, where the Raptors 905 played a special game away from their home court at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre in Mississauga, Ont. During this event, the Raptors 905 played a game for kids and teens to empower and unite them through the excitement of the sport – and U of GH was there too, as the Official Education Partner.
Coincidentally, Cambronne was present at that game because he works at the Scotiabank Arena and helped set up the court and signage at the event.
“Honestly, it was a full circle moment for me, and it's cool to know that I'm in a community that pushes that [empowerment], that connects,” he said.
Additionally, Aucoin loves to see how U of GH gives back to the community and to youth through this partnership with the Raptors 905.
“It definitely makes me proud and inspired to have so many different athletes and the Raptors name affiliated with our school,” she said.
At the heart of it, playing sports is about the love for the game. Once you discover that passion and embrace the learning process, it can spill over into all aspects of life.
“If you're passionate about it, let that drive you and let that be your motivation to be more consistent, be more disciplined. Fall in love with what you want to do. That's something I took from sports,” Cambronne said. “Do what you love. If you have the passion for it, you're going to want to be consistent at it. Always continue to learn.”