ERTHEO has organised among its clients of the football camps of this summer 2022 a Storytelling Contest in first person about how the boys and girls have lived their experience in the Camp.
They have been very enthusiastic and have sent us some very nice stories that we want to share with you.
They have told us how the experience of attending one of our Summer Camps has changed them: how it has helped them improve their sport and language skills, the friends they have made, the challenges they have faced and how being away from their families has made them more mature and independent.
The winning story will be awarded an online Football Course with a world-class team of youth coaches.
We invite you to vote for your favorite story at the following link, to give it a better chance of winning!
We congratulate and thank all the young athlets who took part and wish you all the best of luck!
Here are the stories:
Story by Riccardo Pivi
“What a thrill when I crossed the threshold of West Ham’s Olympic Stadium in London – and I didn’t want to go! My parents managed to convince me: football and studying English in London. After a busy year, I needed a break.
As a right-back in the best defence in the regional league, I had spared no effort. The thought of two weeks of study and football scared me. But the lure of London and West Ham won out and I found myself at London City Airport.
What attracted me was the chance to live like a professional player at 16: an international environment with kids from all over the world.
The impact with London was not so easy: the taxi dropped me 1 km away from my destination, but I managed. The residence where we stayed was above my expectations. A room with a view of the Thames.
Sunday rest and finally on Monday the first training sessions. I had already made friends with guys from Germany and the USA. They are all champions when they talk. And the Americans are very good at talking. But on the pitch it’s different. We Europeans are used to tougher competition than our American friends, who complain about the way we play.
At the beginning it was difficult, but as the days went by and with the language classes in the afternoon, my English improved. The best thing was the friendship that developed between all of us. In the evening, after dinner, the battles that had started in the camp continued with banter.
During the weekend we visited London, a truly international capital with endless stimuli.
I will always carry this experience in my heart, with friendships that continue through social media as we follow friends on their performances. Long live London, long live West Ham.”
Liverpool Summer Camp, England
Story by Lorenzo Sabatino Pantalone
“My name is Lorenzo Sabatino Pantalone, I am thirteen years old, I live in Rome and this was the second year that I attended a football summer school. Also this year I found it very good. In particular, I think it was an excellent experience to be involved, both because, by coming into contact with my classmates, it was “compulsory” for me to deal with children of other nationalities with habits very different from mine, and because it made me improve from a sporting point of view. I got along very well with many kids and also established some good friendships, but on the other hand I also had some disagreements, like with a group of French kids for example; but in spite of this, the differences made me grow and open up to new horizons. Another aspect that I liked a lot is the fact that apart from training, as it should be, we also did a lot of outings and activities, like visiting the Barcelona stadium, the Tarragona stadium, and even the city centre. Other activities that involved me a lot were the lessons, I found them very interesting and exciting: in fact during one of them we had to choose a player and make a power point. The trainings were very intense and educational, but fun at the same time, as well as the coaches. In conclusion I can say that it was a very good experience that I recommend to everyone and I hope to do another one next year as well.”
High-performance football camps in Catalonia, Spain
Stary by Cristóbal James González Cid
“Hello, my name is Cristobal, and I am going to tell you about my experience in Liverpool Camps, my father, one day he asked me if I wanted to go to Liverpool Camps in England, I was a bit scared because I thought it was going to be too big for me, but I instantly said yes excited. One day before arriving in Liverpool, we took the train to Madrid and there we took the plane to London, we stayed in a hotel, during the day we went to Madrid.
I had a great time, I met a lot of kids with very good football skills, very nice and I felt honoured to have trained with them.
When I arrived it was as if we were all a family, we all got on very well and I made a lot of friends, my first training session I was nervous, but I fitted in well with the group and the food was very good, you never felt alone at any time, I felt at ease with everything, but I thought about what my parents were doing until I called them on my mobile phone because there were limits.
I liked the training sessions a lot, not only because of the tasks but also because of the coach we had, he was always encouraging us and he was very nice, as for the tasks there were all kinds, control and passing, shooting, driving and always at the end of each one we had a game. There were houses in the facilities where I had to go in one called “Garden House” very big, I felt scared when I saw it, the whole first day I was scared, it was an unforgettable experience and I would love to repeat next year, if possible.”
Liverpool Soccer Camp, England
DRAW
Today, Friday 02 December, we have carried out the Draw of the Contest, and the Winner has been:
LORENZO SABATINO PANTALONE!
Congratulations to him, who will soon be enjoying the online football course that he has received as a prize!
Many thanks again to all the participants for their enthusiasm, and to all the family and friends who voted for them!
Here we share the video of the draw: