Tuks women’s basketball team gets new coach
Toboti helped the Maties women's team win bronze at the 2019 USSA Basketball Tournament and CUT to be finalists for two consecutive years.
Tuks women’s basketball team has appointed Kimathi Toboti as their head coach this month.
Toboti helped the Maties women’s team win bronze at the 2019 USSA Basketball Tournament and CUT to be finalists for two consecutive years.
His latest challenge is to get the Tuks women’s team to win.
During the last USSA Basketball Tournament, they finished 14th. Judging by recent results, Toboti seems to be already working his magic.
Tuks recently won the Rising Suns Basketball Tournament.
He said as much as sport is about winning, it is also a way to change lives.
“Ten years down the line, I shall forget the championships I have won, but I will always have the memories of the ‘kids’ I coached. If I can change one kid’s life because of basketball, it will mean I have succeeded. The biggest reward is seeing a student athlete grow outside the game of basketball,” he said.
In 2015, he coached the South African women’s basketball team to qualify for the AfroBasket Tournament and it was the first time in six years that they did so.
Toboti, however, admits the team is still a long way from playing at their best.
“The most important thing is to change the mindset of the players. It means they have to take a step back to understand why they failed in the past. It is also about commitment. Whether we practice or play, I expect 100%.
“Still, I try and never forget that they are student athletes whose first priority is to get a degree. Basketball is the one thing that should bring them joy. While they are on the court, they should forget about everything else and enjoy the moment,” he said.
Toboti said some of the players came from poor backgrounds and bad households, so sport is a way for them to change their lives.
Basketball has been of Toboti’s passions from when he can remember.
“I started playing in 1993. I was a defensive player, but I ended up being also a pretty good shooter. Coaching, however, was always my real passion. A definite highlight was playing for the South African Universities team that won a gold medal in 1999 in Zambia. I quit playing afterwards,” he said.
Do you have more information about the story?
Please send us an email to editorial@rekord.co.za or phone us on 083 625 4114.
For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites: Rekord East
For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram
