Sports
On The Ball
by LISA FERNANDEZ
When Kirandip Singh Riar moved from Punjab six years ago and started high school in San Leandro, California, U.S.A., he was too nervous to sign up for the soccer team.
"I was too shy," the 22-year-old said.
But a few years ago, a Sikh friend asked the computer science student to play soccer on a mostly Sikh team at San Jose State University.
The pals have since joined a soccer league in Hayward, composed mostly of team-mates from Mexico and some from Afghanistan. And this weekend, several team members from this diverse league will play soccer at a sporting extravaganza sponsored by the Sikh Sports Association at California State University-East Bay in Hayward.
Soccer has provided Kirandip an entry into mainstream Silicon Valley life.
"I'm more open now," he said. "I'm not shy any more."
This cross-cultural bridge is exactly what association founders had hoped for, said one of the organizers, Harpaul Singh, who also leads the Sikh/Punjabi Student Club at James Logan High School in Union City.
So far, about 950 participants have signed up to play tennis, soccer, golf, field hockey, basketball, track and field, volleyball, and the two sports most popular amongst Sikhs: cricket and kabbadi.
The games don't have any religious overtones, and welcome anyone to play, but the majority of players do hail from Punjab and are Sikh by faith.
Over the years, Harpaul has watched students born in rural areas of Punjab steer away from high school sports teams after they arrive in the United States.
"The kids from the villages, they don't have those kind of facilities back there," Harpaul said.
The Sikh sports event, he said, is to help those kids, and others, become more familiar with a variety of American-style athletics, which hopefully will lead to a more level playing field between new immigrants and mainstream society.
"We want them to learn how to play the games," he said, "so that they won't be frogs in a well. If they learn how to play informally, then maybe they'll start to play at school."
　
[Courtesy: Silicon Valley Mercury News]
August 22, 2009
Conversation about this article
1: Dharamveer Singh (Mumbai, India), August 24, 2009, 9:00 AM.
This is an initiative which I assume has the potential to do wonders for the people utilizing its benefits. My best wishes to the organizers of this event for their future endeavours.
2: Gurpal Dosanjh (San Francisco, California, U.S.A.), August 24, 2009, 7:28 PM.
As a retired recreational soccer player, I can attest to Kirandip's experience. Much of what I've learned on the field, such as speaking up/teamwork/etc., can be applied off the field. My only question for the author -is this open to female Sikhs as well?