Sports

Football has been a constant across every country I have lived in. I started playing in Sweden with Sollentuna FC, where the game was a fast way to make friends across language barriers. At BASIS International School Park Lane Harbour I have played varsity soccer all four years of high school — as forward, wing, and back — and the sport became not just something I play, but something I organize: through National Honor Society I helped launch the school's first inter-house tournament and ran more than ten school-wide matches.

• Varsity team player for four years (Grades 9–12) — forward, wing & back
• 2nd place, BASIS High School Girls Football Competition (regional)
• Started at Sollentuna FC youth teams in Sweden
• Organized 10+ school-wide soccer matches through National Honor Society

Taekwondo combines physical discipline with mental focus in a way no other sport I have tried does. Each belt represents not just skill, but self-control and respect — values that translate directly into how I approach everything else in life.

• Regular training combining poomsae (forms) and sparring
• Competition experience at school and district level

Learning to skate on frozen Swedish lakes is one of the most magical memories of my childhood. Those winters gave me a relationship with cold and silence that I still carry. Skating taught me that falling is part of the process — what matters is the willingness to stand back up.

• Learned both figure skating basics and recreational speed skating
• Skated on natural outdoor ice in Stockholm winters
• Participated in school skating events

Curling is a sport of precision and strategy — often called chess on ice. I was drawn to it because it demands patience, communication, and the ability to think several moves ahead. It is a team sport where every small adjustment matters.

• Trained at a local curling club in Sweden
• Learned sweeping technique and stone delivery
• Developed strategic thinking through skip-level play

Rock climbing is the most honest sport I know — it is just you and the wall. Every route is a puzzle that demands both physical strength and problem-solving. It has taught me to trust my body, commit to moves, and find calm in uncomfortable positions.

• Regular bouldering and top-rope sessions
• Progressed through indoor climbing grades
• Built grip strength and route-reading skills

Swimming is the sport where I feel most at peace. Underwater, everything else disappears — it is just rhythm, breath, and movement. It has been a constant form of exercise and meditation across every city I have lived in.

• Trained in freestyle and backstroke
• Regular lap swimming for fitness and mental clarity

Running is the simplest sport — no equipment, no team, just you and the road. I started running longer distances as a way to clear my head and build endurance. It taught me that progress is not always visible, but it is always happening.

• Regular running for fitness and stress relief