Shuttle Time National Coordinator, Mozambique Badminton Federation
A Sporting Childhood
I come from a sporting family; my father was a accomplished in both futsal and football. I am the fifth of six brothers and we all have multifaceted sporting skills. We grew up in the city of Beira in Mozambique, without many resources; sports in general completed our days. We practiced everything from football, futsal, basketball, volleyball, tennis and rugby, but the high point of my life was when I got to know badminton.
Influence of a Mentor
I saw badminton in 1995 at the Pedagogical University Gymnasium, Cidade da Beira when I went to see my brother Ibrahimo training.
Mariama Diogo Da Silva was the founder of the federation and the heart of badminton in Mozambique. He constantly called us to practice. Diogo was the one who originally promoted badminton in Mozambique and in his honour we continue to do the same and spread his legacy by constantly calling children to get to know badminton. We owe a lot to Diago for keeping us away from bad habits during our childhood.
Three of us in the family – me and my brothers Ibrahimo and Zulficar – became active badminton players. For more than 20 years we lived badminton indoors and outdoors, and we were inseparable and competitive with each other, which made us stand out in our country.
We are all married and when we meet for family lunches the conversation turns to badminton.
Badminton and Me
For me badminton is a tool that shapes young people for society in an intense way, more than most other individual and team sports. Young people acquire technical, physical, intellectual and tactical qualities that can be used in daily life. For me badminton is a lifestyle because everyone who practices or has practiced badminton wants the same for their children due to the positive experiences that badminton transmits to the practitioner.
Impact of Shuttle Time
We have held several events to promote badminton through Shuttle Time. The thrill of teaching and giving joy to the children in the community using so few resources (badminton kit, racket, net and shuttlecock), is unique. Their smiles are contagious and we are making efforts to obtain financial and material resources to continue with these projects.
Lessons Through Shuttle Time
The big lesson I learned with Shuttle Time is to respect stages during the technique teaching process as well as understanding that badminton can be practiced and disseminated anywhere. In Mozambique we always thought badminton could only be practiced inside a hall and only by some clubs and academies. But today, a Shuttle Time Tutor has all the tools available to teach the basics.
