NSA’s Student Athletes, Extreme Edition: The Reality

By Zoe B.

Trophies, popularity, leniency from teachers – these are some of the things people first associate with a top-ranked student-athlete. However, the reality is incredibly different. While aspects of playing a sport at this high level are amazing and very rewarding, there are also many challenges that make one wonder whether the effort is worth it.

Meet Tiziano. He is a sixteen-year-old NSA student who also happens to be the second-best tennis player in Argentina in his age group (“World Tennis Tour Junior Rankings”). He has dedicated his life to tennis from an incredibly young age, which has allowed him to reach the ranking and success he has. However, it has not been all sunshine and rainbows for him; the challenges he has encountered are unique and have resulted in a maturity not seen among many kids in his generation.

A clear example of this is that he has been in nine out of the twelve countries in South America for tennis tournaments (Brighton). Several of them, he has traveled to alone, all before the age of sixteen. He traveled from Bolivia to the United States, and then from the U.S. back to Argentina fully alone, at the age of thirteen. This is one of the tough realities of being a student-athlete; it involves traveling to many places alone. The costs are usually fully covered by the parents, and everything is expensive, which leads to many young teenagers traveling all over the continent alone. People often think that traveling to other countries means being able to walk around the cities and visit famous places, but this is very rarely the case. Time is mostly spent in three places: the tennis club, the hotel, and a car. Those who have not been involved with competitive sports do not realize two important things: how long every day in a tournament is and how exhausting it is. Many times, one gets there at seven in the morning to warm up and leaves at eight in the evening after having played two full matches, which barely leaves enough time to have dinner, get to the hotel, and get enough sleep to do it all again the next day.

However, it is not only during tournaments that student-athletes have exhausting days; it is the norm for them. In the case of Tiziano, he spends at least five hours a day training, five days a week. Add the long car rides to and from the tennis club, he gets home at six in the afternoon and must figure out a way to get all his school done before bed. During the week, fatigue and exhaustion build up, and during the weekend, he must recharge to do it all over again, during the entire year. This leaves very little time for hobbies, meeting up with friends, and doing things any normal teenager does. That is why many student-athletes have a level of maturity that is not seen among other people their age – the life they live makes them grow up earlier, consciously or not.

One of the hardest things about being a high-level athlete is the effect the sport has on their bodies. While people may think that doing sports at this level is very healthy, this is not necessarily the case. Training so many hours so often can negatively affect the body. Injuries are common among high-level athletes, and Tiziano is no stranger to them. When asked about his worst injuries from tennis, he shared how the worst one was a “wrist injury from a fall [in the court] that took me out of competition for 3 months.” While the injury itself is terrible, recovering from it is even worse–not only because the recovery itself is long and hard, but because of what it means.. While others get to use the time to continue training and getting better, one is stuck at home not being able to do anything, and it feels as if all the progress made will be lost.

After talking about all the issues and difficulties that come with doing sports at this level, one may ask, Why? Why do it? Why give up so much of one’s social life and live in such a structured way? After all, it is estimated that less than 0.05% of tennis players in the world will reach a professional level (“How To Become A Pro”). In response to this question, Tiziano said he does it because he has “an objective that even if it takes time, [...] is worth it.”

Let the story of Tiziano show that behind every successful student-athlete is a teenager overwhelmed with their sport and school, and doing their best every day to reach the goals they set for themselves. Let it inspire you to be more like these student-athletes and give your all to accomplish your goals.

Columns: 👤NSA People, 🧑‍🚀NSA Culture

Zoe B. lives in Argentina with her parents and one of her two brothers. This is her fourth and last year at NorthStar Academy, as she's currently a senior. This is her second year in the Navigator and in Student Council, where she currently holds the position of Vice President. In her free time, she enjoys going to the gym, reading, baking, and watching Formula 1.