Student of the month – Football Player Kevin Ban

Year 8 student Kevin Ban has been selected as the “Student of the Month” by the Sports Department because he is the only student currently at BSB who is training with a professional football team! Kevin is training in the Youth Academy of Beijing Sinobo Guoan F.C. (Guoan) since he was 10 years old. http://www.fcguoan.com/en/

Kevin joined BSB in 2013 when he was in Year 2 and he is currently studying full time in Year 8. He has been a very keen sportsman throughout his time at BSB, representing the school in many sporting events in both the Primary and Secondary Sports Teams.

Please see an interview with Kevin below.

How long have you been playing football?

I have been playing football for 5 years since I was 8 and I started to take professional training when I was 10.

Why did you decide to play football?  When did you first get interested in football?

I first got interested in football when I was about 8 years old.  I decided to play football because it is a very unique sport, a lot of team work is needed, but that is not the only reason. Whenever I play football I would feel relaxed and excited from the bottom of my heart. The last reason is I like the way how the International Football Union focused on improving the rules to make the game more playful and fair.  For instance, the goals used to have no net behind them so that it was hard to tell if the players achieved a goal or not. These are why I find the game interesting.

What was your fondest memory of playing this sport?

My fondest memory of playing this sport was when I did the tryouts for joining Beijing Sinobo Guoan.  It was very memorable and exciting for me. I was competing with the best 12 years old young players in China. Even though I was wounded and I still got chosen from hundreds of the opponents and finally I were the one of the 38 players!

What is your greatest accomplishment?

I think the greatest accomplishment for me is to get selected by in the team. It is a rare chance to be chosen. You have to put in a lot of efforts to join this team.

Have you ever received any medals/recognition in this sport?

Yes, I have. I won about 70 medals in different competitions.

What positions do you play? What’s your favourite position?

I play Right halfback or Centre halfback. I would like to play on the wing.

How often do you train?

I train 2 hours every afternoon except for Sunday.

Is its difficult balancing school work with training and matches?

It is difficult and it bothered me a bit because I missed some lessons and team work with my classmates.

What are your personal goals for this sport?

I would like to keep being a professional football player as long as I can.

Who is your favourite coach, and why?

Mr. Xing is my favorite coach. The reason for that is he is an experienced and technical football coach who teaches me a lot of new skills. Even though on the field he is very strict to us, he treats us like a friend when we finish training.

If you could play any professional team, who would you play for and why?

If only I would have a chance to join FC Barcelona in Spain, that would be the top reward for me. Their team spirits always make me think I still have a long to go in my football career. By the way, Messi who is one of the top players of world, is also from that team. It fascinates me when I watch the team competes.

Who is your role model? Who do you look up to and why?

It hard to answer this question as there are too many great players that I should study and learn from. They all have different highlights in their football careers.

What do you hope to accomplish in the future?

I wish I would have chance to play against those teams in the World Cup in the future.

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