Basketball |09 January 2024

Steven Servina (Photo: Contributed)

China-based Steven Servina acquires USA gold coach license

Well-known Seychellois basketballer Steven Servina is now able to mold players and unlock talent after successfully being accredited with a USA Basketball Gold Coach license following the completion of a course in November last year. 

Born and raised in the Anse Boileau district, Servina is currently working with NBA jr in China and is also the player/head coach of Breakers basketball cub.

In an interview with Sports NATION, Servina, 42, said his journey towards such accomplishment was not easy and it was thanks to his experience as a player and coach that made it possible to be successful in the course. “To become a basketball coach with a USA Gold license you must have a good knowledge of basketball and coaching. In the course I learned how to manage a club, the atmosphere with supporters, refereeing and also staffing. The course prompts you to be a leader rather than just a basketball coach,” said Servina who also added that he learned a lot about player protection due to the vast pool of players of different origins.

During the course, the coaches also learned about basketball player development strategies, a clear established culture, organisational philosophy, and a unified approach to teaching.

Servina, who began his coaching career around 15 years ago, has worked with players of different age groups from junior to senior level. He said over the years he has followed some mini courses about ‘introducing basketball to kids’ and ‘basic training skills for basketball’, but the recent one is probably his biggest accomplishment.

“The USA Gold License is conducted only two times a year, I was able to apply and complete mine two months ago,” Servina proudly told Sports NATION.

Servina explained that since Seychelles last hosted the Indian Ocean Islands Games in 2011, he has seen that the focus on youth development in basketball has dropped significantly. With his experience, Servina said it would be a great initiative if he could contribute towards hosting some basketball jamborees for the youths as they did in the past to revamp the interest among the young generation in the sport. Servina is still helping his country in every way he can, noting that he assists some clubs in the top division of the Seychelles basketball league by preparing lesson plans, training programmes as well as coaching tips and techniques.

He also mentioned that he is entitled to run his own seminar where he can host sessions with local coaches. “Why not join together in the coming years and collaborate to help our country move forward in basketball,” said Servina.

He concluded by saying that he is ready to help out his homeland and feels that now he is well equipped to take on any tasks.

Servina started playing basketball when he was about 13 years old and almost immediately began his career with Angels in the country’s first division playing alongside the likes of Steve Antat, Garry Duprès, Norcy Agathine, Darren Lesperance, Daniel Dodin and Jean-Paul Camille. He led them in scoring for most games as he could drive the lane and shoot from beyond the three-point arc.

Servina then left Seychelles in his early 20s to pursue his studies in China and he holds a Masters’ degree in interior design at the Donghua University. While in China, Servina played for different teams.

One of the best shooting guards around at the time in Seychelles, Servina also spent eight years with the Seychelles national team and his biggest achievement was winning the IOIG gold medal in front of the local crowd in 2011.

Neil Sirame