Andrew Ellis is a former Black Caps Cricketer but also played National League football for Canterbury United.
Andrew is a great example of why Balance is Better, putting a lot of his sporting success down to playing multiple sports growing up and having a wide range of transferable skills. He’s a former Black Cap who still runs out onto the pitch for Canterbury Cricket, and is also one of Sport NZ’s Balance is Better Champions helping influence mindsets in youth sport and work with organisations to adopt a Balance is Better philosophy and commit to this statement of intent.
In this video, Andrew discusses some of the key outcomes sports can deliver to the youth of New Zealand by staying in the game, and exploring lots of sports.
So what are some of the key takeaways to consider when it comes to creating youth sporting environments for coaches, parents and volunteers?
- Multiple sports can make you a better athlete, both mentally and physically
- Having a wide range of transferable skills helps young people not only be successful in sport, but in life too
- Focus on enjoying sport, and make the most of the learning opportunities while you’re there
- Parents should listen to their kids, and understand what’s fun for them
- Coaches need to keep young people at the centre of their decision making to have long lasting effects on participation, development and performance.
Image Credit: John Davidson / www.photosport.nz
