Samson Arakelyan: More than 6,000 children got through the school basketball league for last 10 years

The final games of the X season of the youth basketball league of Mangistau region among boys and girls were held on the open basketball court , Doma Doma Street Court. Throughout the season, young basketball players competed against each other for the leading positions in the regular season and finally, on May 27, they met to compete for the prizes of the tournament.

Players of four age categories from the following city schools: No.1, No.2, No.7, No.9, No.10, No.11, No.14, No.23 and schools No.1 from Kuryk and No.12 of Munaily district took part in the final.

According to the results of games among girls of 2003-2004 years of birth, school No.11 won the first place. The school No.1 took the second place. The team of school No.14 took the third place.

Among the boys born in 2003-2004, the winner was the team of school No.2. The second place was awarded to school No.23, the third - to school No.9.

The winner of the first place among boys of 2005-2006 years of birth was the school No.7. Players from the Munaily district won the second place. The school No.9 is on the third place.

On discipline 3x3 among boys 2007-2008, school No. 7 won the first place. Players of the school No.12 of the Munaily district took the second place, the team of the school No.23 took the third place.

The winners of the school league, who took the first place, were awarded cups and a special sponsor prize from ERSAI – a certificate for professional basketball sneakers for all players of the team.

In the nomination of "Best player" in their age categories, Shakhmurat Sadayev, school No.2, Vladislav Tereshchenko and Maxim Ostapenko, school No. 7, were awarded.

It is no secret that 15-year-old chess player Shakhmaturat Satkeyev is the younger brother of Aymurat Satkeyev, who plays in the professional club "Caspian". It was he who brought him to the basketball section for the first time, when the younger brother was 12 years old.

- Of course, we almost lost to the team of school No.23. The only salvation that our rivals are lower in height. And here Nikita Gribenikov helped us and improved the situation, - said the young basketball player after the victory.

Shakhmurat previously engaged in football. First he was a goalkeeper and then an attacker. After his family moved to Aktau from Kyzylorda, he began to play basketball.

- As soon as my brother invited me to try hand in basketball, I immediately got carried away. My award, first of all – is the merit of my brother, coach, my friends and, of course, the team. In the future I plan to play in Caspian a professional club, - has shared Shakhmurat Sadayev with a smile.

It is worth noting that the "School basketball league" league was organized with the support of ERSAI, in September of this year, 10 years of fruitful cooperation will be celebrated. The company allocates the budget for the purchase of uniforms, balls, competitions, payment for coaches.

Director of the Mangystau basketball Federation Samson Arakelyan stressed that ERSAI is a permanent partner of the School League and assists in the development of mass sports in the region. More than 6,000 children got through the school league for last 10 years

- If you look at the composition of Caspian, the basketball club, more than half of the players are from Aktau. All of them, without exception, began their acquaintance with basketball and fell in love with it at school league. If it was not this project, we would not be able to find guys who "fell" into basketball and became professionals. Moreover, some of them already play for the national team of Kazakhstan. I can say without exaggeration that this is one of the most popular sports projects in the Mangystau region. No sport can boast of such involvement of young people, so the support of ERSAI is priceless for us. School League is held not for one day, but for the whole school season. Every weekend the guys know that competition waits for them and they will act on behalf of their school. Accordingly, they are engaged in useful work and many of them want to continue to play basketball professionally. And, again, with the financial assistance of ERSAI and "Samruk-Kazyna Trust", fund of the development of social projects, "Doma Doma Street Court", the basketball court with the coverage of the world standard, was reconstructed. At the moment we have the opportunity to continue basketball classes for both children and adults. We have already started summer sections, morning and evening groups. Far too many who do not go on vacation live on the basketball court. This is their second home, - said Samson Arakelyan.

According to the director of the Mangistau Basketball Federation, this project involved students not only from Aktau, but also from schools of the villages of Munaily and Kuryk, Mangyshlak station, Zhanaozen.

- We plan to make the final of the school league united with other regions. And maybe it will be an unofficial championship of Kazakhstan among such school leagues. "First of all, it is a very good experience and motivation for the boys," said Samson Arakelyan.

The idea of rewarding winners with useful prizes, professional sneakers - belongs to Samson Arakelyan.

- When I was 12 years old I was watching NBA basketball sneakers on TV. It was the most inaccessible and most desirable thing for me. Today, the teams that took the first places received a certificate for the purchase of professional basketball sneakers of Nike, Adidas, Under Armour brands. We take the sizes of the players and I personally order them from the USA. Boys even ask for shoes of two sizes larger to use them longer. This is also a very strong motivation for boys, because the cost of shoes is 50 thousand tenge and not all parents can afford to buy them for the child, - said the Director of the Mangystau Basketball Federation.

This September marks the 10th anniversary of the basketball federation of Mangystau region, the 10th anniversary of the youth league and Caspian professional basketball club. In honor of the anniversary, the basketball Federation plans to hold a city festival. It will combine sports, music and dance.

- Over the years, the guys have grown up and many of them are already playing in Caspian, professional team. Being the curator of this project on behalf of ERSAI and a resident of the city, I am proud that this project started 10 years ago, is fruitful and productive. This is the most serious mass movement for development of sport for children and young people, - told Dana Konyssova, quality manager, ERSAI.

Playing basketball, students train willpower, endurance, ability to overcome difficulties, ability to work in a team. It helps them in adult life to achieve success, – underlines Dana Kossynova

- This is a very hard work. Both school coaches, organizers, and children themselves - all work during the school year and achieve high results. After seeing the results of this project, our subcontractors joined us. For example, Ligabue Central Asia took over the sponsorship of the basketball league among girls. In addition to this project, we are actively engaged in the development of preschool and school education. We have implemented training technology, Step by Step and the technique of Montessori in all kindergartens of the village of Kuryk, while in Aktau it is only used in several private kindergartens, - said Dana Konyssova.

ERSAI is currently building the first site for street workout in Kuryk, which is scheduled to open in June, this year.

Parents who wish to enroll their children for basketball can contact by phone: +7(702)510-65-00 or 8(7292)54-52-14