A life changing experience

Sport and development projects are always designed to improve the lives of the participants; however, they can have an equally powerful impact on the facilitators. Rohan Kandoi shares his experience working for Pro Sport Development and how it has shaped him.

Starting out as an intern in early 2013 I was excited to join Pro Sport Development to start a new chapter in my life. I was looking forward to being a part of their projects because PSD works to provide marginalised and underprivileged youth sustainable participation in sport.

Working at PSD’s Khel Vikas project provided me with multiple opportunities to work alongside other sport professionals in a multi-cultural setting. This not only enhanced my own knowledge but also exposed me to a variety of fields within sport development.

My experience working directly with underprivileged youth in a rural setting in Odisha, India, has benefitted me in understanding how to use sport as a social tool. This experience opened my eyes to many realities I had been unaware of. Living in various remote areas helped me to understand how sport can help promote not only physical education but also the holistic development of children.

My role at PSD has given me the opportunity to travel to a number of places for various events and has exposed me to different kinds of situations. What I enjoyed best was travelling with my athletes for their competitions. The excitement leading up to the event and being able to encourage the athletes track-side has given me maximum joy.

The children have also been able to experience what is takes to be a top-level athlete. They got the opportunity to meet and perform alongside national level athletes. They interacted with them so as to be able to understand their rigorous training schedule and draw inspiration from them.

At Pro Sport Development I didn’t only learn about sport but also learnt how to be a confident decision maker and develop my soft skills. I developed qualities of communication and professionalism as well as a strong sense of responsibility. The best part was to be able to transfer these skills to the children through my engagement with them. The children understood the importance of developing soft skills so that they are more confident in their daily lives.

In three years I believe PSD has helped me become who I am today, which makes this experience at Pro Sport Development priceless. It has been a life changing experience not just for the project participants but for me as well.

[This article has been edited by the Operating Team]