Hi folks! I’m Aayan, a first year student studying PPE. I’m gonna give you a little insight into what sports are like at York, which ones I take part in, how playing them makes my experience at university better, and how they will for you too.
My experience of sport at university
First of all, I think the best thing about sport at university is that because the university and college teams are separate. You can be a pro, or you can be a complete beginner. There will be a sport and a team for you. A sport I had never really done before was climbing (specifically, bouldering), and my friend asked me to come along one week. Now I go nearly every week. There are socials for climbing, as well as every other sport. This basically means a night out with your friends you see at the sports clubs, which is always fun. At university, I play badminton, table tennis and tennis. I play in the Langwith College team for badminton, and play tennis and table tennis a few times a week too. I play badminton the most, it involves 1 or 2 training sessions in the week, and weekly college games on Saturdays against other colleges.
How I got into my sports
That ain’t me by the way, but I started playing table tennis when I was young. Like at 9 or 10. I realised that I was naturally pretty good at it, so I kept playing it. Because badminton and tennis require the same sort of skillset, really good hand – eye coordination, so I was pretty good at them too. But I ended up only taking table tennis and tennis seriously, and just playing badminton casually. When I was around 15 or 16, I took a break from playing sports seriously and started the gym. I’ve now been on and off with that for around 2 years. I think that playing sports competitively for years was taking a toll on my mental health. Even though I have been extremely inconsistent with going to the gym, it’s done wonders for my mental heath in a way I didn’t think it could.
A little story from when I used to play tennis competitively
So back when I used to play in tournaments pretty frequently, I distinctly remember one memory, because it kept my love alive for the sport. Around 5 years ago, I was playing in an under 18 tournament, I was around 14 at the time, and I managed to get to the final, until I lost to someone much older and stronger than me. I ended up beating people who were 17 and 18 in this tournament, and the reason this memory stuck, is because it wasn’t about losing at the final, but beating people who I thought I never had a chance against. What I’m trying to say is that if you ever think you can’t do something, or you’re scared that you might not be good enough, do it anyway, and I promise it will be worth it.
A few tips for prospective students interested in sports at York
If you are someone that loves to try new things and new sports I encourage you to go to as many sports sessions of various sports, whatever they may be. Because most people are also just casual and don’t really take it seriously, you’re always gonna have a good time, and it’s a great way to see how much you enjoy new sports. If you are someone who wants to try get into a university team, I’d reccommend practicing daily and hard before coming here. The University teams have incredible players. In terms of the gym, when you get here in Freshers’ Week, I’d sign up to the gym asap, there are really good offers in Freshers’ Week, nearly £100 off! Even if you’ve never gone to the gym before, I’d get a membership, because just doing some daily exercise can elevate your mood so much and fix problems you thought were much bigger than they really are.
These are just my experiences and tips, but in general, I love sports, and wouldn’t give them up for anything. If you are thinking about getting involved in a new sport, take the leap because it will be worth it. That’s me though people, take care!
Leave a Reply