When fun meets funD!

In Malaysia, there's an unmistakable football tag line that goes "Cakap bola, tidur bola, makan bola!". Well, the Penang Floorball Association (PFA) has decided to re-brand the 'makan bola' phrase to a more... er... literal sense.

On the 2nd January 2010, Saturday, PFA will be hosting a fund raising dinner at Persatuan Bulan Sabit Merah, 26 Jalan Grove, 11400 Penang from 7pm-10pm! Lots of crazy fun stuff lined up! Band performances, dance, etc! All this for only RM25! It's really cheap!

Indubitably, floorball in Penang has grown rapidly and positively over the recent years. Clubs are growing, schools are following and players are improving. Moreover, this year we witnessed the milestone of floorball in Penang as it embarked on its first time ever Sukan Penang 2009, a state level affair, with the involvement of the Penang Sports Council!

Evidently, PFA is working hard towards the growth of the sport both at the state level and at the national level. They strive to bring floorball to a greater scale for the benefit of all floorball enthusiasts. However, this cannot be achieved without the concerted efforts of both PFA and the people - YOU!

As such, PFA is organizing a fund raising dinner. The purpose of the fund raising is really simply to help grow the sport to the next level. Floorball is a team sport. So, let's show them that we are team players in the floorball scene!

Don't hesitate any longer. You literally get to talk floorball and eat at the same time! What else can you asks for! ;) Those who are interested and want to get tickets, please feel free to drop me a line! I really hope to see you people there.

(This event is organized by the Penang Floorball Association)

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Post Time-Out!

Last week, I had the opportunity to hang out with 13 vibrant youth for 3 days and 2 nights doing various team building activities, water sports and a rather torturous treasure hunt! Time-out was great! :)

After several weeks of planning, the camp was finally at its execution stage. In all honesty, I was worried with the small number of sign-ups. I wasn't sure how the participants would react knowing that it was only a handful of people joining. But as it turned out, we did have a good! Being a small group, it made things easier for me to get to know each one of them at a slightly more personal level.

I believe that connecting with youth requires a certain amount of passion, skill and gifting. I was a little nervy in the beginning knowing that its been a while since I actually touch base with youth/teenagers. Coming in contact with this young energetic bunch was like stepping back into familiar ground, a path I once trudged on. I've also forgotten how time has altered ideas, perspective, values and attitude of the youth of my time and the youth of the present. I guess as believers, our task is to be continually aware of the tides and currents of time and be ready at all times to reach out for those who are being pulled away by the waves of the world.

Reaching out.

Being a youth, most would disregard the importance of forming the right values and beliefs. More often than not, we would chase after elements that are appealing to the eyes rather than the heart. I remember when I was a youth, I wanted to look cool. I longed for popularity. I craved for approval from others. And the songs we listen to today seem to echo the grandness of these things. We need to educate youth to stand up against the teachings of the current media. Going through your youth is like walking on thin-ice - and we have to be their guide along the way to lead them to thicker and firmer ground so that they are safe from the misguided ways of the world.

Sometimes, it's cool to be uncool.

We need to educate and empower youth to walk on solid ground.

Gateway Sports Network (GSN) believes in the power of sports to influence and impact lives. During the course of Time-Out, we emphasized on a couple of values that we felt were important for the participants to take back home.

Listen.
I remember that when I was in my youth, one of the main issues I had was listening to others. I believe that this issue is still very much relevant to youth these days.

One of the main things we crave for as a youth is freedom; the freedom to do what we want and when we want. In every youth, there seems to be this growing angst and rebelliousness within them that can apparently distort their sense of hearing and listening. I too was once like that.

We wanted to reinstate the importance of listening in Time-Out. Hence, one of the key issues we drilled them was to be able to listen to instructions and to move according to the instructions given. We wanted them to understand the importance of listening while at the same time help them see the consequences if they choose to do otherwise. Without the ability to listen, a person character and foundation can never be changed.

Never stop trying.
Any professional athlete would tell you that the phrase 'give up' is not in their lexicon. These two words do not exist. Youth needs assurance when they are pursuing a certain goal in life. Failure can traumatised their perception of perseverance, hence, many youth these days find it hard to strive forward towards a certain goal when failure taunts them. Understandably so.

As one who once walked through the thinned ice phase of youth, we need to be their cheer leader, pushing them to never stop trying when they are pursuing something that is of value. On the other hand, we also need to be there to stop them from chasing after things that are of no value in this life. We must know when to cheer and when to jeer accordingly ;)

Participants engaging in a team building activity and they never stopped trying until they got it right!

Attitude reflects leadership.
If you've watched the movie "Remember the Titans" you would have remembered this quote - 'Attitude reflects leadership'. It basically means what we do and how we bring ourselves about will affect the people around us, what more if we're in a leadership position because who we are will flow down to our followers.

It's like canoeing. When you canoe, you're given a paddle. With that paddle, you have control over your canoe. How you paddle and how you steer the canoe will determine where you'd go. But it does not only affect you. How you paddle also affects your friend who is in the canoe with you. The person who sits in front of the canoe must then be able to paddle properly, consistent to a certain timing and towards a certain direction. Only then, will the friend who is sitting behind know how to paddle, when to paddle and where to paddle to.

You have control. What are you going to do about it?

We are all a leader in our own right. Therefore, we all possess the power to make a change. Towards what sort of change, good or bad, is entirely up to us to decide.

We need to live to play it in such a way that we make positive change towards society.

We had numerous activities for this young bunch to do. From the "toe skill" activity to "pail-lifting-while-singing-Nergaraku" to "caterpillar walk". For every activity, we wanted to impart something that is of value to the youth.

Doing the caterpillar walk.
Learning to keep pace as a team to accomplish a common goal.

It requires a strong bond of unity, tolerance, understanding and perseverance to be able to stand as a team.

As a team, we must always lookout for our team mates.

Safety comes first before fun.

I had a blast at Time-Out with this group of youth. It's encouraging and even inspirational to see how much potential each individual has in their own different ways. Some showed maturity beyond their age and it's refreshing to see that. God will definitely build champions amongst them, champions who would lead the way to His kingdom.

Seriously

crazy bunch of people!

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Mountain climbers.

As floorball in Penang chart its way into history, Bukit Jambul (BJ) too made history of their own as they participated in their first ever floorball tournament as a school and as a team! I had the privilege of leading and coaching them during the inaugural SUKPEN Floorball Challenge last week.

Floorball enthusiasts gathered at Shang Wu school for the SUKPEN floorball competition 2009!

I've not worked with schools before, hence, I had no experience whatsoever in regards to leading a school floorball club. So when the opportunity came, I had a certain amount of anxiety but also a fair share of excitement. It's been a while since I worked with youth. So it was a bit worrying thinking whether or not I'd be able to relate to this young group of sports enthusiasts. But after a few rounds of training with them, I found them to be a great bunch with great potential!

From left-right:
Calvin, Ruben, Zoe, Syahmi and Jay-Sern.

Indeed, they have great potential. Stepping into their first ever tournament, moreover, a state level competition, was truly a test of character in itself. Most of them have not played more than 5 times! They really did not know what to expect and I truly respect their courage for rising up during the competition. C'mon man, they had to face teams like Ztec and Innebandy! Woah, salute! Salute!

I'm glad that they had a complete experience. In fact, they had more than they bargained for. The first day of the competition seemed to be a bad day for BJ. Firstly, they only had one game in store for them. Secondly, they had to wait for at least a good 4 hours before their turn arrived. Thirdly, their first game was against Ztec!.... Waiitttt... Still got some more bad news...

When their turn to play finally arrived, they faced another hiccup! A major one in fact!

Power outage!!!!

Floorball in Penang created yet another history... Power failure in the midst of a match for the first time ever! Don't know whether to laugh or to cry when I think about it. But I must say though, it was quite an experience. I'm glad I didn't miss it. Hehe.

The BJ'ians taking a team picture in the pitch black hall!

Unfortunately for them, the competition had to be postponed to the following day. Thankfully though, the following day we didn't experience any sort of power failure. Phew!

My instructions to them were fairly simple - Firstly, I told them that character precedes winning. So at all times, display honourable and respectable character on and off court. Secondly, have fun lah and don't muka masam! =) Thirdly, after every game make sure they approach the opposing team and shake their hands. And I'm glad that they achieved all three! Great work BJ'ians!

Ztec vs. BJ!

The subs looking and cheering on for their team mates!

I'm not going to narrate what happened from their first match till' their final one. At the end of it all, I'm proud that they displayed a positive attitude and energy in the team. I'm glad that they learned their first and most important lesson through that competition - winning is not the means to judge the spirit and the heart of the team. Character will lead to bigger wins in the future.

BJ finished fourth in the competition. It's really quite a good position to be in considering the fact that they are a new team. I'm proud of every single one of them - Lisa, Eureka, Pei Li, Zoe, Sonia, Daniel, Ruben, Calvin, Aziz, Hafiz, Syahmi and Jay-Sern. They proved to themselves that there are no mountains to high for them to climb =) Keep climbing those mountains guys!

BJ Bahaya!

Keep it up BJ!

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A glimpse of the promised land.

I was still in KL when I had my first glimpse of floorball. I was just 14 back then. Floorball didn't interest me at all. I brushed it aside thinking that it was a game only for 'sissies'. Well, God has a funny way of making me eat my words. Who would've known that years later, I would be part of a floorball family here in Penang, engrossed and totally sold out for the sport! ;)

I wasn't in Penang when floorball first started off. Hearing stories from the people who were there since day one always makes me wonder how was it like when it first began. From what I've heard, they used to play on rough cemented basketball court without any proper knowledge of the rules and regulations. C'mon, some even taught the wrong stuff!

It has been almost 7 years now since Penang first held a floorball stick. The tides have changed. Over the years, floorball has gained momentum through the efforts of pioneers who persistently ploughed through each season. They toiled against every obstacles and got their hands dirty so that we can have what we have today.

7 years is really quite a long time. To brave through a stormy ride for 7 years ain't an easy task. But 7 also represents a perfect number and truly, this year proves to be one that is significant as God opened a crucial door for the floorball scene here in Penang. It's almost as if God is saying, "Well done! And here's just a glimpse of what I'm going to give to you if you continue to move towards my direction!".

This year, floorball for the first time ever, was featured in SUKAN PENANG 2009 (also known as SUKPEN 2009)! Now, you'd be wondering what's so special about that? For years, the pioneers of floorball have been working hard towards making floorball a national sport in Malaysia. So to see floorball taken up by the Penang Sports Council with open arms is a small but essential step towards the growth of the sport as a whole. This is indeed a milestone for floorball in Penang.


Last week, I had the privilege to be part of the floorball contingent to witness the opening ceremony. 10 of us represented the Penang Floorball Association. It was truly an honour to be able to stand in line with my fellow comrades who had the same passion and most importantly, comrades who shared the same vision. I remember a challenge someone posted me once - "Would you be standing in line with the true vision of floorball or would you walk away and just be another passer-by?". Looking at where we are now, I'm glad that there are people who dared to take up the challenge and stayed in line even though at times the battle ahead seem a little too overwhelming.

Standing in line alongside the rest of the floorball troops!

Marching into the hall during the opening ceremony was really quite special. Even though I wasn't exactly the first batch of floorballers or pioneers, I still felt a great sense of pride of what they've achieved up until that very moment. The walk into the hall was an assurance that a new chapter is about to begin, one that is filled with greater obstacles and bigger victories. At the end of the ceremony, Penny came up to me and said, "When you guys walked into the hall, I got teary. It was an emotional moment because as I witnessed you guys marched into the hall, I was witnessing God answering our prayers that very moment". It's true, without God in the equation, floorball would not have journeyed this far, or exist for that matter. Thanks Dad! You da' man! =)

Marching with pride and thanksgiving into the hall.

The various contingent lined up during the opening ceremony.

I had chat with a friend this afternoon via msn. Interestingly, I found myself sharing with him what people once shared with me - the vision of floorball. I had a full circle moment there. It's always a joy to see young potential rising up in the floorball scene and even greater to see them catching and owning the vision. My personal prayer for many of the younger players would be that they'll see floorball not merely just as a sport but beyond that. It is beyond the euphoric feeling of winning medals. It is more than just achieving technical and tactical skills. Floorball is about instilling character. It is about empowering, impacting and changing lives. It is about acknowledging the mastermind behind it all and keeping to that blueprint of His.

It is about Him.

Will floorball ever going to make it to the national level?
Of course it will. I have no qualms about it.
But until that day comes and even when that very day arrives, let's continue to cling on to that vision, playing the positions that He has assigned us to and play it at the level best we can. Let's not walk nor stray away.

And so, to the pioneers of floorball in Penang, job well done! I'm glad to be able to be part of the floorball family in this tiny but very happening island! ;)

To the Mastermind and Genius behind it all, thanks! We'll continue to stand in line as we march forth towards Your promises!

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Time-out!

Shouting out to all students who are on their school break!

Come and be part of a sports and adventure camp called 'Time-out!' from the 7th-9th December 2009 at the Penang Water Sports Centre! You only have 3 more days to sign up!

Quick! Quick!

We'll be having team-building games, water sports, ball games, movie night and hiking! It's a good way to chill-out from your studies and hang loose for a little while! If you're interested, please drop me a line here or contact me via e-mail at topher.koh@gmail.com. Quick!

Don't think anymore, sign up now! Below is the registration form! :)


(This event is powered by Gateway Sports Network.)

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