Dilrabo Mirzakulova glanced down at her notes, smiled, and raised her gaze to the small audience of fellow Uzbek basketball players and coaches waiting for her team’s presentation to begin.

In her distinguishably gentle tone, she thanked all who were responsible for putting together the program she and 10 other Uzbek basketball players and coaches completed over the previous nine days.

“In just these nine days,” she said in Uzbek, “I have gained enough inspiration for the rest of my life.”

The Basketball Embassy is no stranger to planning and facilitating cultural exchange programs. The San Antonio-based nonprofit has executed projects through the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs in Moldova, Kosovo, Tunisia, and others over the last several years and when PH International presented the opportunity to take on a women’s empowerment through basketball-themed exchange, TBE president Chris Dial eagerly accepted the challenge.

“This program was really exciting for us for several reasons,” he said. “One being that we had become accustomed to participating in reciprocal exchanges like this one platformed on funding from the Department of State, but due to COVID, our participation had dwindled to what were infrequent remote opportunities. So this being an in-person program and one of the first ones that we could engage in in person post-COVID was an opportunity that we didn’t want to pass up.”

“Of all the places personally that I’ve been and worked and seen basketball taken me to, Uzbekistan has not been one of those places,” he added. “I wanted to connect with this community and their culture and learn. I looked at it as a really great growth opportunity personally and professionally, and it did not disappoint. The delegation from Uzbekistan was full of compassionate and kind people that want to grow and develop themselves and that recognize how important a game like basketball can be in opening doors and creating opportunities. We feel like we’ve made some lifelong friendships and we’re looking forward to the second part of this program which will see a delegation of Americans in Uzbekistan to continue to connect and share best practices so that we can help initiate and effect positive change in their community.”

PLANNING THE PROGRAM

San Antonio is home to a significant number of nonprofit institutions, many of which are aimed at empowering women and youth, and was subsequently an easy choice to host this delegation.

“In the past, we’ve hosted inbound portions of these exchanges in other cities like Dallas, Denver and Washington D.C.,” Dial said. “And while those are incredible places with incredible people, there’s always an extra amount of confidence when we host groups right here in our hometown of San Antonio. Once again, San Antonio really came through and showed what kind of place it is and what kind of people are here. Everybody that was involved in this program didn’t just participate passionately and share and connect, but really went above and beyond the scope of this program to provide what truly became a once-in-a-lifetime experience for these visitors.”

TBE quickly went to work planning an itinerary that would serve the purpose of the program well, and after a few weeks of planning, successfully lined up a standout group of individuals and organizations comprising:

Tanya Ray, Our Lady of the Lake University women’s basketball coach
Mandy Tyler, sports dietitian nutritionist and San Antonio Spurs consulting dietician
Dr. Jacob Tingle, Trinity University assistant professor
Jenny Carnes, San Antonio Sports CEO
Tanzila Kaiumova, City of San Antonio Economic Development Department international relations manager
Jordan Green, Ballogy CXO
Haley Holzem, Our Lady of the Lake University women’s athletic administrator
Yolanda Rodgers, Spurs Sports & Entertainment director of community sports
Brooke Matula, Morgan’s Wonderland sports director
Dr. Randall Griffiths, University of the Incarnate Word associate professor
Ashley Miller, Haven for Hope enrichment coordinator
Dr. Blakely Low-Scott, licensed counseling and sport psychologist, Train the Mind
Lyn McDonald, licensed specialist in school psychology, Train the Mind
Cecilia Cross, San Antonio Council for International Visitors executive director
Dustin Karrer, Brentwood Christian Academy head boy’s basketball coach

Dial said he took tremendous pride in what TBE’s partner organizations and individuals put together for the group during their visit.

“I was really proud of my city, really proud and fortunate and humbled continuously throughout the program by our partners that TBE is so fortunate to have. I’m more than confident that we really had a positive impact and a real meaningful imprint on this group and what they hope to accomplish back in their home.”

Dr. Blakely Low-Scott conducted an interactive session that showed the group how to exercise their minds, filter thoughts through the lens of their helpfulness, and other useful practices.

THE TIMELINE

The group touched down in Houston late Saturday night and hopped on a charter bus to San Antonio. The following morning, Tracy Guion of PH International conducted a brief orientation to set expectations for the group. TBE’s Zach mason gave a brief overview of the activities, sessions and workshops planned for the week.

AFTER GRABBING A BITE TO EAT, THE GROUP VISITED OUR LADY OF THE LAKE UNIVERSITY to observe the women’s basketball practice and chat with head coach tanya ray.

On Monday, the group attended a presentation from sport nutritionist mandy tyler on healthy eating habits for athletes, as well as ascending the career ladder in a male-dominated industry.

Later in the day, the group went through a leadership workshop at Trinity University with Dr. Jacob Tingle and Dr. Angela Breidenstein, and began working on their action plans. After the session, the group watched the trinity women’s basketball team practice.

On Tuesday, the group toured the Alamodome and talked women’s empowerment with San Antonio Sports CEO and TBE board member Jenny Carnes and members of her staff.

The group then headed downtown to tour some of san antonio’s historic sites with Tanzila Kaiumova of the city’s Economic Development Department.

After dinner, the group returned to OLLU to participate in a basketball in technology workshop by Ballogy CXO Jordan Green.

On Wednesday morning, the group heard from Haley Holzem, OLLU Women’s Athletic Administrator, on Title IX and women’s empowerment in college athletics.

Later in the afternoon, the group toured the AT&T Center with Yolanda Rogers before attending the San Antonio Spurs season opener against the Charlotte Hornets. The group also celebrated interpreter Sanjar Irkakhodjaev’s birthday.

On Thursday morning, the group learned how to play wheelchair basketball with Brooke Matula, who also gave the group a tour of Morgan’s Wonderland.

In the afternoon, University of the Incarnate Word associate professor Dr. Randall Griffiths led the group through a team leadership workshop and brought in international players from the Cardinals’ women’s basketball team to participate in an activity as well as a panel session to answer questions about student-athlete experience as someone from outside the United States.

That evening, the group toured Haven for Hope with Ashley Miller before participating in a basketball practice with homeless youth led by Chris Dial.

On Friday morning, the group went through an interactive Train the Mind workshop led by Dr. Blakely Low-Scott and Coach Lyn McDonald.

That afternoon, the group headed to Confluence Park to doing some volunteer service and river cleanup with Sara Ramirez of the San Antonio River Foundation.

On Saturday, the group went shopping and saw some more landmarks downtown, including the Alamo.

On Sunday, Chris Dial and Dustin Karrer led the group through a basketball skills clinic at OLLU.

Later in the afternoon, the group presented their action plans - the ideas they cultivated from a week of learning that they’ll work to implement in their home communities back in Uzbekistan.

After presenting their action plans, the group celebrated with dinner and a closing ceremony, in which Chris Dial and Zach Mason presented participants with their certificates of completion.

THE RESPONSE

Participants and session leaders alike praised TBE’s program and the value in each individual activity, as well as the overall theme and the execution thereof.

“I thoroughly enjoyed my experience talking about mental skills and sport performance with the Uzbek delegation,” Dr. Blakely Low-Scott said. “The young women and coaches were genuine, eager, and open during our time together. I loved seeing the animation in their faces and hearing their reactions to some of the new concepts we discussed together. Despite speaking different languages, we clearly connected through our emotional experiences. I hope to be a part of more exchange experience like this in the future.”

Dr. Randall Griffiths, who conducted a session and attended the action plan presentations, said he enjoyed working with the group and eagerly anticipates the next actions of these emerging leaders in Uzbekistan.

“Working with the delegation from Uzbekistan was a pleasure,” he said. “The group was obviously open to each and every experience and expert. Nowhere did that come across more than when they presented their action plans, which brought together ideas and practices from throughout the week in San Antonio. I look forward to witnessing their impact after they return home.”

NEXT STEPS

TBE will send an American delegation to Uzbekistan on March 14-24, 2023, for the second leg of the exchange. The American participants will have the chance to meet with the Uzbek group and check up on the progress of their action plans. Applications are open and TBE encourages all who are interested to apply now.

This Youth Leadership’s through Sport exchange program is funded by the U.S. Department of State, Sports Diplomacy Division under International Sport Programming Initiative (ISPI). For more info, visit https://eca.state.gov/sports-diplomacy

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Women's empowerment through sport in San Antonio: TBE hosts Uzbek delegation for 9-day learning experience