On the weekend of 17-18 May, Cardiff Met Archers basketball team hosted their annual charity event, bringing together members of the club and the wider basketball community to ensure that non-stop basketball was played for a 24-hour period. Over 150 people signed up to play, with participants were split over two teams, each supporting a different charity.
This year was the first time junior members were chosen as captains. The role involved planning, organising and delivering the full event, managing teams and selecting the charities.
Ethan Benningwood, an under-16 player at the club was selected as a captain and chose to raise funds for YST, as he wanted to give something back for all the experiences he had gained through the Young Ambassador programme as a member of the National Steering group in Wales. Ethan’s co-captain, under-17 player Abigail Clifford, selected FND Hope as her chosen charity due to her Dad living with the condition.
Scores were tallied from every game played, and FND took the win at the end of the 24 hours with a narrow 10-point victory. Over £6,000 was raised to share between the charities, including a sizeable donation from Centrica, enabling just over £3,000 to be donated to YST.
Ethan said: "It was wonderful to see all age groups and the inclusivity of the event, which brought together our running, wheelchair and additional learning needs groups.
"There was a mixture of exciting and challenging times, and the support from the participants helped especially in the early hours, where everything I did made my body crave sleep!
"The event as a whole was an incredible experience and a wonderful opportunity to play basketball and connect with different people I wouldn’t normally engage with. It allowed me to put lots of my YA learning into practice and to further enhance my coaching skills. The experience will stay with me for a long time."
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