On Friday night in Pauley Pavilion, the Norwegian-born Mari Hole had one of the most impressive matches of her freshman season in helping the women’s volleyball team to a win over Washington State.
Twenty-four hours later, the 6-foot-2-inch Brit-turned-Bruin Andy Rose stood a head above everyone else in patrolling the backline as the men’s soccer team battled to a draw with San Diego State.
Less than a month has passed since men’s tennis standout and Israeli Air Force veteran Amit Inbar took home the singles title at the ITA West/South Regional Championships.
The fall sports season at UCLA has been marked by the accomplishments of a number of international athletes who have found their second homes in the Westwood campus’s various sporting venues. This should come as no surprise, as UCLA is routinely one of the most diverse athletic programs in the NCAA. The multicultural flavor should stand as one of the hallmarks of the sports department, right up there alongside the 104 championships that Bruin teams boast.
Of course, there are the recognizable faces whose stories have been well-told by this point. Alfred Aboya comes to mind: The recently graduated basketball player hailed from Cameroon and has dreams of returning to his home country someday as president.
But then there are the Hole’s, the Rose’s and the Inbar’s. The latter’s teammates on the UCLA tennis squad form a veritable United Nations of collegiate athletes, with players from Tunisia, Egypt and England in addition to Inbar.
UCLA should be lauded as an institution that draws elite international athletes, a characteristic of the university that benefits not only the athletic department but also the always-important diversity of the student body.
“I lived in Europe for a long time, and when they think of California they think of the whole Hollywood atmosphere,” UCLA water polo coach Adam Wright said. “Those international athletes visit the campus and see how nice it is, and then they realize that there’s a school with this great athletics program situated in the middle of all of that.”
The school’s foray into the global sports scene should develop into an ideal reciprocal relationship: UCLA wants to extend its reach to Cameroonians, Tunisians, whomever. And why stop there? Got a Klingon power forward who can play post defense and shoot 3s? A Wookie who can pole vault? Send ’em to Westwood. Meanwhile, athletes around the world interested in making a big jump to a prominent stage should appreciate what UCLA has to offer.
“We’ve won the most national championships so it’s a pretty easy sell,” Wright said. “You can play up the weather, the location, the facilities. The athletics department really sells itself.”
In many respects, the easiest element of the transition occurs on the field of competition. There are obvious barriers when it comes to language and other aspects of American culture. Thankfully, UCLA is well-aware of these issues and makes the shift a little smoother.
“For every question I’ve ever had regarding being an international athlete, someone has been able to answer the problem,” said sophomore Kristian Kuld, a libero on the men’s volleyball team and a native of Toronto.
“The athletic department and the Dashew Center (for international students) work together to provide help, and I’m quite satisfied with what they’ve done,” he added.
As a Canadian, Kuld didn’t feel the need to take advantage of the “English slang” classes offered to UCLA’s international athletes. That said, freshman outside hitter Chen Levitan out of Israel ran into a bit of a mess when he mistranslated “playing hooky” into “playing hockey.” Two minutes for cross-checking, Levitan.
Aside from communication issues over ditching lecture, UCLA is an ideal environment for international athletes to flourish. These players will continue to make crucial contributions to Bruin sports teams, and the UCLA athletic programs will continue to be at the top of the class when it comes to showcasing foreign stars.
That’s a class that isn’t worth ditching.
If your idea of studying abroad is watching a men’s tennis match, e-mail Eshoff at reshoff@media.ucla.edu.