Students form club team, gain Evian and Maidong sponsorships

Beads of sweat dripped from the chins of the exhausted players and the audience clenched their fists and held their collective breath in anticipation as the two teams raced against time to score a goal.

On November 5th of 2017, a fierce SMIC “club” team faced JinCai International Division (JCID) in the semi-finals of the Sesame Hall Cup, hosted by SAS. Although the team did not take home the trophy, just playing made it all worth it. Most notably, the team gained sponsorships from two major companies: Evian–the French water–and Maidong, a Chinese sports drink. “[The sponsorships] are awesome,” James commented. “[It] means that our team has value and we are able to bring some influence to the sponsoring companies.” Other members were pleasantly surprised with the sponsorships as well. “I didn’t expect any sponsorship for our small team,” Jay Jung (12C) said candidly.

At the beginning of the 2016 school year, James Kim (12C) assembled a boys’ soccer team with his friends to represent the school. The purpose of the team was to prepare the players for the Boys Varsity Soccer Team, so they are only active during the first semester (since the school’s soccer season is during the second semester).

The players went through a great journey in the course of the season, taking away valuable lessons and experiences. “What I have learned coaching the players in season 16-17 in particular gave me a huge push in my football career. It gave me a chance [to see] football in the perspective of coaches, and provided me with a good cornerstone in being the captain of the SMIC Varsity Soccer Team,” James revealed, who had helped the team through difficulties such as personal injuries, teamwork, and coordination.

There were a number of rules set for the league in order to avoid injuries such as the ban of tackling and pushing, however, the team did not see this as a burden. “I think that all these [rules] were good experience [for] all the players in our team,” commented Jonathan Kim (10C). “Even though the result for the tournament could have been better, I still think that it was a beneficial season that prepared us for the Varisity Soccer season coming up this winter.” The members are aware that there is still room for improvement but are ready to improve. “We learned a lot from this season. Although we do have school spirit, everybody can still improve,” commented Robin Kim (11A). The captain, Jungwon Choi (12A), expressed his gratitude and affection for the team, saying, “We had the will of a tiger, the speed of a cheetah, and the heart of a lion. I appreciate all the efforts and was honored to lead the team.”

With the whistle shrilling across the field, the third Sesame Hall Cup tournament and season came to an end. The players, although drained, happily gathered their belongings and emptied the last drops of their Maidong drinks before making their way home. Despite not making it to the semi-finals, they have taken much from this season and continue their soccer journey.

Photos courtesy of KaiXing Tan