The Namibian Basketball School League (NBSL), under the auspices of the Namibia Basketball Federation (NBF) and in collaboration with the Deutsche Hohere Privatschule (DHPS), recently hosted its first-ever basketball symposium.

The event was made possible through the support of the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB), the German Federal Foreign Office, the Deutsche Basketball Bund (DBB) and the Basketball Artists
School (BAS) Foundation. Held at the DHPS school grounds, the program was aimed at bringing
essence to the NBF motto of “united under one footprint”, and it saw different coaches from various
backgrounds coming together in an interactive environment to share ideas and opinions.

Two sessions: a practical session in the morning and a theory session in the afternoon were held, with guest instructors present on the day to guide the local coaches.

Guiding the sessions were national team director Manuel Carballo, former FIBA referee and basketball
expert Charles Nyambe and DOSB basketball expert Frank Albin, who was present as representative
for the German Olympic Sports Confederation. “Coaches need to take such opportunities when they are presented to them because a coach never stops learning,” said Thandi Boois, one of the participating coaches. Coaching the U/16 and U/19 girls’ teams at the Windhoek International School (WIS), Boois said she enjoyed the morning sessions, as they offered the practicality required by coaches to
take part in the drills.

As the event is tailored to grow the sport as much as possible, NBF development officer Malakia Matias
was happy to see the turnout of 50 coaches and players from Eros and Mandume Primary School.
“It is not every day that our local coaches are exposed to international styles of coaching, so this was a
very necessary initiative from the two countries to unite and push the development agenda,” said a delighted
Matias. The theory sessions went as far as touching on topics such as how to attract more girls to basketball.
All coaches present were awarded a coach’s starter kit. This kit included a basketball, a whistle, a pump and an extra needle, as well as a certificate.