Edina SELIMOVIC | My International Student-Athlete Experience

Edina SELIMOVIC | My International Student-Athlete Experience 

“I did NOT regret 0.1% for my decision to come here! It’s a one life opportunity and one life journey! ”

— Edina S. (Bosnian Volleyball Student-Athlete)

First, a little background on you and the school...

• Your full name:
  Edina Selimovic


• Your country of origin?
  Bosnia


• Your last team in your home country before attending school internationally?
  ...


• Name of your college/university?
  University of Arkansas at Little Rock


• This school is in...
  USA


• ...your sport?
  Volleyball, 


• ..your jersey # ?
  4


• ...received a scholarship?
  Full Athletic


• ...enter your major(s):
  International Business


• ...select your status in school:
  Senior


• Lastly, please enter your PERSONAL profile link from your school’s website:
  http://lrtrojans.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=2217&path=wvball


 

Tell your experience BEFORE you got to your foreign school...

• ...choose any of the following that helped you in your process of deciding/getting to a foreign school:
  Parents, 


• ...how difficult was it to decide to go to a foreign school (0-10 being the most)?
  8


• ... If you knew what you know NOW... how difficult would it have been to decide to go to a foreign school (0-10 being the most)??
  0


• What were the main things that convinced you to choose to go to a foreign school? :)
  The main four things that made me to come in US are: to play volleyball of course, to get a college degree, to learn how to speak English, and new experience! 


• ...What, if any, were the difficulties in choosing to go to a foreign school?
  Being far from my family...


• ... and how did you overcome these obstacles to get to a foreign school?
  Easy... just put on the piece of paper what would I gain and what would I lose by coming here... My gains won, and my decision was obvious! 


• ... how helpful were the staff at the school with getting you admitted (0-10 being the most)?
  10


• What things  helped you get everything done to get to a foreign school?
  Coaches from the University helped me a lot, and foreign student-athletes !


• 
  

Lastly, your experience at your foreign school...

• ...your happiness with international student-athletics?
  10


• ...What, if any, were the difficulties to adjust to life in your school’s country?
  Whenever I first came here I couldn't speak English that well so that was basically the most difficult for me, and I would say "adjusting to food"


• ... and how did you overcome these obstacles to adjust to school life?
  By studying more and more every day, talking to people and meeting new friends! By realizing it was easier and easier every day...


• ...What were your best experiences in your foreign school?
  Seeing all these big beautiful Gyms...visiting a lot of different states...different program of practices and workouts...how much you can be appreciated only if you work hard and share your positivism....meeting families and friends that will stay forever in my life...coaching little girls (11's,12's,13's)...tasting the best deserts in the world...making 2nd round of NCAA last year...visiting my family in California two years in a row...much more...


• Anything else you’d like to mention?
  I did NOT regret 0.1% for my decision to come here! It's a one life opportunity and one life journey! 


• Would you be interested in an international athlete network? Yes


• Do you plan to be a PRO in your sport after college? Yes

5 Reasons Why I Ask Better Athletes Questions! by RJO

MY TOP FIVE REASONS I ASK QUESTIONS...

#1 I DON'T KNOW EVERYTHING! 

18 years I have been a volleyball player! After 13 years playing professionally.. 10 years off & on with the USA national team... Living as a pro in over 15 countries & playing in over 30 countries... I STILL CAN LEARN SO MUCH!

#2 I DON'T WANT TO MAKE MORE MISTAKES THAN I HAVE TO!

I want to learn new things to be the best I can be as quickly as possible. Other athletes that have done something I haven't done can help me see what problems they had achieving that goal and how the overcame or solved the problem to learn that thing or skill! 

#3 I CAN HAVE A SUPPORT NETWORK OF MENTORS IN CASE OF EMERGENCY!

Whenever something goes wrong if I already have mentors that have helped me learn something new or solve a problem I can reach out to them for some help because we already know each other and solve my problem IMMEDIATELY rather than letting the problem get TOO BIG!

#4 IT KEEPS ME INSPIRED!

When I see players & athletes doing things I still have done or better than I do them I am so inspired. I know I have to raise my level to achieve my goals BUT also to have MORE FUN!

#5 BECAUSE I CANNOT & NO ATHLETE CAN BECOME GREAT ALONE!

In my life EVERY SINGLE GREAT.. not good.... GREAT! athlete has had other mentors whether athletes, friends, coaches, teachers, etc surrounding them to improve in every area of life... because in order to be great.. I must be sure I am EMOTIONALLY.. PSYCHOLOGICALLY... PHYSICALLY & SPIRITUALLY healthy... If I don't have balance and positive sources of energy surrounding me from all sides it will LIMIT ME FROM ACHIEVING GREATNESS! That's not acceptable.

“You are the average of the FIVE people you spend the most time with!”

— Jim ROHN

#31 Learn To Silence Your Ego with Gabi KOEVA

#31 Learn To Silence Your Ego with Gabi KOEVA

Athlete Case Study: Bulgarian Women’s National Volleyball Team, Middle Blocker for Beşiktaş Women's Volleyball (Istanbul Turkey).  Elite Sports Students Mentor  

_____________________ ____________________________

February 24, 2015

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Listen ON-THE-GO (00:55:44) NOW -or- mobile via iTunes | Stitcher | TuneIn Apps!

BACKGROUND

On today’s episode we will talk about how Gabi got to where she is today. We will discuss how she decided to play volleyball instead of basketball, as both of her parents are former basketball players, but at her age, volleyball was the only option. She explains some of her struggles and decisions she has had to make over the years, as well as some of the mentors she’s had to help her. She also shares how she handled being a bench player while playing for the Bulgarian Women’s National Team and the importance of silencing your ego and continuing to work hard no matter what situation you may face.

BIO

• Born, Gabriela KOEVA, from Pleven, Bulgaria on July 25, 1989.

• 6’2” (188cm) Middle Blocker, Volleyball player

• Grew up in the basketball gym, as parents are former players of the sport.

• Attendended National Sports Academy "Vasil Levski" in Bulgaria

• Has played professionally in Bulgaria, Switzerland, Italy and Turkey.

• Was invited to join the Bulgarian Senior National Team at 17 years old. Has been a member est. 2007, received the Bronze medal in 2011 for the European Volleyball League, and the SILVER in 2012.

• Business Administration Major

• One of Elite Sport Students founding Mentors

LEAVE A REVIEW & Subscribe to #BeyondAthletic in iTunes so other can find us too! Share this with one person you think could benefit the most…

Listen ON-THE-GO (00:55:44) NOW -or- mobile via iTunes | Stitcher | TuneIn Apps!

PERSONAL QUOTE:
“Remember that talent is only 1% of an athlete’s life, and the other 99% is hard work, hard work, and more hard work.” -Gabi’s Father

MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSON IN HER LIFE:

Dragan Nesic, the first coach to send Gabi an invitation for the Senior National Team, whom she learned the most from volleyball wise; Svetlana Ilic, Gabi learned a lot from her while playing in Switzerland, was one of the only coaches she had to emphasize importance of mental preparation.

Key Discussion Points:

• When was a time you struggled in your sport or life in general?

• How did you mentally handle being one of the bench players?

• When was a time during a match that you made a mistake, and what did you do to move on from it?

• When was your lightbulb moment?

• When was one of your proudest moments?

• What lead you to your studies that you’ve recently completed?

• What is your current plan to be successful in your life and sport?

Key Lessons:

• Accept failure!

“We all fail on a daily basis. I think its important that we learn from our failures.” GK @ 10:22

• We need to learn to silence our egos and look objectively at the situation we are in

“After all, its the National Team and all the best players from your country are playing there..you have to give them respect..good players, they are not just random people on the court.” GK @ 13:16

• Focus on your skills, getting better, and proving yourself at every practice

• Competition within the team is what helps evolve players

• Egos can be good and bad in some ways

• Find a way to compete and add value to your teammates, make them better

• Do your best to move on quickly from the mistakes you make while competing

“I talked to myself.. ‘the set is gone, it was just one point, you made a mistake, it was not your fault, focus on the next set, start over, do your thing, try to keep in mind the goals you have, focus on the small things, FORGET about it.” GK @ 17:28

• The whole team loses/wins a game, not just one individual

• If you dwell on the last mistake, you are most likely to keep making more

• Sometimes you have to change your scenery or location to be closer to your success

• The most successful people are those who challenge themselves, looking outside the box

• Have your OWN vision for what you want in the future and create small goals to achieve that vision

Listen ON-THE-GO (00:55:44) NOW -or- mobile via iTunes | Stitcher | TuneIn Apps!

ATHLETE'S TIP JAR

What is the best advice you have ever received?
Always see the positive in every situation; things are how they are, its in our power to understand them how we want.

What is the first thing you do when arriving to a new team or arena?
Team: I look forward to the first couple of practices so I can see how the coach is working with the team, so I can understand their perspective.
Arena: I check out the lights, they can be disturbing sometimes

What personal habit do you believe has contributed most to your success?
When I start something, I really want to finish it.

Sleep & Morning ritual:
I sleep between 8-10 hours; I have breakfast, coffee/tea, I am up a few hours before practice, on the court half an hour before doing warm up/ mobility exercises.

What is one way you’d like to improve yourself?
Always try to learn something new, reading books

How do you cross-train to stay fit when you aren’t playing your sport?
I go swimming a few times a week

What is one book you would give away as a gift and why?
The Obstacle is the Way by Ryan Holiday; I would give this book to anyone who is struggling with something in life, sports, business, etc.

If you had a do-over, knowing everything you know now with all of the new resources (Beyond Athletic Podcasts, ESS Mentors, etc.) ,what would you have done differently and why?
I think things would have happened quicker for me, after listening to other’s experiences on a podcast, I would have learned a lot quicker.

INFO

Charity/Organizations They Add Value to:
Elite Sports Students; Mentor
Possibly a summer camp, 2015,  in Braham, Minnesota, run by Noah Dahlman

Past/Current Teams:
Past: VC CSKA Sofia, Bulgaria; Voléro Zürich,Switzerland; Minerva Volley Pavia, Italy
Current: Beşiktaş Women's Volleyball; Bulgaria Women's National Volleyball Team

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Contact GABI

Gabi's Blog | Facebook | Twitter | ASK GABI Q's Here

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Definition of Being An Athlete?

"Very important in our society; sports are famous, entertainment; people feel a direct impact from sports. If you have a role model, you are interested in all aspects of their professional and personal life. We as athletes should be giving a good example to the young kids. We are influential and
should take it seriously" -Gabi Koeva

RESOURCES

Books Mentioned:
The Obstacle is the Way by Ryan Holiday
Relentless: The Ultimate Mind & Body Challenge by Tim Grover

Also Mentioned:

Vlado Jaksic; Basketball Peace Ambassadors; Video

Braham, Minnesota
Noah Dahlman
VC CSKA Sofia,
Voléro Zürich
Minerva Volley Pavia
Beşiktaş Women's Volleyball
Bulgaria Women's National Volleyball Team
Elite Sports Students; Mentor
Beyond Athletic Podcasts
European Volleyball League
Pleven, Bulgaria
National Sports Academy "Vasil Levski"
Bulgaria,
Switzerland,
Italy
Turkey
 

LEAVE A 5 STAR REVIEW FOR THIS EPISODE ON:

ITUNES -OR- OUR SITE

WE WILL GET YOUR REVIEW TO THE ATHLETE! @BEYONDATHLETIC

-Ryan (Owner @ EliteVolley.com)
____________________________
Elite Volley Agency
SRB Mobile: +381628905135 | USA Mobile: +13233623829
Sports Podcast: www.BeyondAthletic.com/listen
Agency: www.EliteVolley.com 
 

5 Questions You Should Ask A Professional Athlete! by Gabi KOEVA

 5 Questions You Should Ask A Professional Athlete!

“If I had the chance when I was younger to ask a professional athlete something I would probably ask... ”

— Gabi KOEVA (Bulgarian National Volleyball Team)

1. I'm wondering, should I start playing professional sports or should I focus on my education?

What I would say now looking back to the path I chose is that these two things can be both done, you don't need to make a choice! There are plenty of possibilities. When I was playing in Zurich I had a coach - Tom Hogan, former USA national team assistant coach and currently @ Denver State University (ex-coach @ Colorado State University) volleyball team - who wanted me to join his team in Colorado, meanwhile educating myself there. I didn't go anyways, since I had already started my education in Bulgaria and I managed to keep up with studying and playing abroad, but in my opinion college sports provide the perfect balance between those two things. You will be able to play college volleyball (or any other sport) and get an education. Once you get your degree you can focus on playing professionally. 

My journey didn't include going to the USA, but I made it work somehow, thanks to technology and the opportunity to get online classes in some private universities in Europe. It wasn't easy, I'm not going to say it was. I had to make a lot of sacrifices, spend a lot of time on reading and writing paper works and projects, but after all I'm proud that I was able to do my major and my master in Business Administration and along with that to play professional volleyball in Europe.

Sign Up to get more info about USA/CANADA Education

2. How important is nutrition for an athlete? 

 Nutrition plays a key role in professional sports. It does in life in general, we all know eating healthy is good for us. But when playing as a pro, we really need to take care of what we give to our bodies, since we need to recover well and be in an optimal condition for next practice or game. 

The truth is nutrients affect us in long term, meaning it's not enough to eat good a couple of days pre-game. Our bodies work on long term frames - 48hrs/72hrs/weekly and in that context an athlete's diet should be consistent and must include proteins, carbohydrates and healthy fats. I eat 5 times per day for example and I am trying to make heather choices with my food, I prefer cooking at home and when I eat out every once in a while I still try to stay on track with the right nutrients. 

If you have been eating unhealthy so far but still able to perform good imagine how much better can you feel and how much could you improve you performance by eating better!!! Don't sabotage yourself by not doing the best you can, because professional sports only last so long and you will be looking back thinking "What could I have done better?".

P.S. We all have a "cheat day" every once in a while of course. Treating yourself with your favorite not so healthy foods can be an awesome stress relief, but let's try to not exaggerate with it!

Click to hear more about this HERE

3. What should I focus on to get better?

Every one of us has his strong and weak points. I'm pretty sure we are all aware of our owns. If you're not really sure you can always talk to your coach or an older, more experienced teammate to help you with that. Next thing to do is work on your weak spots every chance you get - while lifting, during ball practice, even at home or in your free time by visualizing what you need to to and how you are doing it! It might sound funny at first, but mental practices play a very important in high level sports, since at that point everyone knows how to play, but the once with stronger mindset in the crucial moments are able to win! 

Another thing I would advice "younger me" to do is to find a role model, someone to really look up to as an athlete, man or woman, doesn't matter. Try to study their moves and how they play and act on the court. It could be even more than one person, just find those athletes that inspire you to strive for greatness! 

Click to hear more about this HERE

4. How important is weight lifting in sports?

From what I have learned weight lifting can be as important as ball practices, especially when we no longer need to learn how to pass the ball, we are professional athletes, aren't we. But lifting can help you improve dramatically your performance by boosting your physical abilities to another level!

Of course no one ever said you can become Superman or Wonder Woman overnight :) but it is something you must be consistent with, along with your diet, since weight lifting, as nutrition, also works in longer terms. Your fitness program should consider preparation, in-season and out-season workouts of course, but even more you must realize that lifting doesn't just make you better in few months.

In order to see the real benefit form it, you must have patience. It takes years to build muscle and improve physical qualities! 

5. What about recovery?

Recovery is one of the most important things for your body, alongside with your diet and fitness. Recovering well means sleeping enough, taking care of your body, having massage on regular basis and etc. 

Sleep is probably the most crucial part. A lot of athletes don't get enough sleep and it always affects their performance, no exception! Though "enough sleep" for one can be 6 hours and for another 10, I feel best after a good 8 hour sleep, preferably going to bed earlier and waking up earlier. For me it's never the same 8 hours if I go to sleep at 2am or at 11pm for example. Night sleep is the key!

Other important things for me are getting a good full body massage at least a  couple of times per week. During the week I would also go swimming 2 or 3 times, making 20-30 laps since it's very good for you back and shoulders (joints that suffer the most form volleyball), I would go to sauna and steam bath as well when I have time. 

Thanks for reading...If anyone's interested in finding a mentor, like me :), then SIGN UP HERE!

Hugs, Gabi Koeva 
Follow me: Twitter | Instagram

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