Limitless World Magazine by KZ Chester Mbekela

Letter from the editor

Welcome to the first issue of Limitless World Magazine! Sports, business and technology have become heavily intertwined. With my experience of having lived and played sports in over 7 countries, I learnt a lot about those three elements and how they complement one another. With sports, providing the entertainment, business providing transactions and technology guiding us into the future.

Limitless World Magazine will aim to give readers a chance to dive into the world of well-travelled athletes and entertainers and learn about the different life experiences and lessons that these individuals have been through. We also aim to give readers a chance to learn from upcoming entrepreneurs and what theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve encountered on their journey. Living in a foreign country and out of oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s comfort zone forces one to explore uncharted territory and the greatest discoveries are made in this way. Our magazineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s name, Limitless World is selfexplanatory in the sense that there are no limits to the discussions we will be having with our guests and our topics. We are excited to bring our readers unlimited sports content, business content as well technology based content. Enjoy!

KZ Chester Mbekela Chief-editor

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TABLE OF

CONTENTS 6 20 Question with Bokang Setshogo 15 Lamelo Ball blueprint 1 7 H o w t o ke e p i n s h a p e a s a f o r m e r a t h l e t e 2 1 L e t â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s t a l k t e c h

NAME HERE

FOLLOW ME

CONTRIBUTORS

2 3 A h i p h o p t r a c k t h a t t a ke s u s b a c k

WEBSITE/BLOG

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Setshogo 20 Questions with Bokang

- Te n n i s g u r u - F L , USA

1. Welcome BK, first and foremost, please introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about you. My name is Bokang Setshogo, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m 32 years old and I live in Florida, USA. I am a pro tennis coach. Before being a coach I was a tennis player for a number of years.

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2. When did your journey with tennis begin? I guess I could say my journey with tennis began at a very young age. My parents were both huge tennis fans. After my dad came back from Birmingham, England, where he studied, he brought back a tennis racket that I would play with in the back yard. I would hit the ball against the wall non-stop and just watching countless tennis matches as a family was sort of the beginning of it all. We loved watching all sports as a family eg. Football, rugby to name a few. Oficially I started playing tennis at age 9.

3. When did you realize that this was a sport that could change your life? For the most part, I played football and played tennis only three times a week. Things changed for me when at age 12 or 13, an International Tennis Federation representive recuited me to try out for their program based in South Africa. After being accepted into the program, meant that I had to move to Pretoria and play tennis full time while attending high school in Pretoria as well. I guess at that point, I realised hey, I might be good at this and wanted to see where it would take me, leading into the next phase of my life.

4. Could you share with us some of the memorable teams you represented? Without a doubt, the honor of representing my home country, Botswana as a junior at the African Junior Championships and the Davis cup. All tournaments that gave me the opportunity to wear my countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s colours, will forever be special to me. Training at the ITF centre and getting to play against and with my fellow ITF teammates was an enjoyable experience for me too. They were teammates who basically became family. My college playing years also hold special memories playing for Drake University. I have nothing but great memories playing with those guys.

5. What was it like, playing tennis at college level in the USA? How different was it from playing in Africa? Playing at college level in the USA was definitely a level up because colleges generally recruit the best tennis players from around the world to play for them. This meant that there were no easy games for me as week-in and week-out I played against the best tennis players in college. The competition back home is tough as well but the difference between the two experiences is that, at college level, you play as a team to earn points for progression while in the ITF junior circuit, it’s more of an individual perfromance based system.

“at college level, you play as a team to earn points for progression while in the ITF circuit, it’s more of an individual performance based

“

6. What would you say were the challenges you faced in adjusting to your new life in the USA? Challenges I would highlight are the visa situation, the paperwork that comes with it and the nerve wrecking interview that one has to attend at the US Embassy. It’s never easy making the decision of leaving everything and everyone you know back home and move to a place where one knows nobody. But you know, sometimes making those sacrifices is necessary to better one’s life. It is what it is. In my case though, I was fortunate that I was part of a team in college so making friends was easy. Those are the benefits of being part of a team in my opinion.

7. Have you lived in any other states within the USA? I have lived in three states since being here. The first state I lived in was Iowa, in the mid-west, not too far from Chicago Illinois. The mid-west winters get brutally cold with the snow and heavy winds. I enjoyed it though. I’ve lived in Texas as well and really enjoyed my time over there too. They have a very good tennis program that helped me devolop my tennis game further. Finally, my move from Texas would be where I’m currently based now, in Florida. I love living in Florida because of its amazing weather and beautiful scenery. Moving here has also been beneficial for my tennis coaching career and I’m just loving life here!

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8. How has playing tennis abroad developed you as an individual? What are the life lessons you learned while on your sports journey? I’ve learnt the art of patience. Iv’e learn that sometimes you can’t control situations and you should just let things be and make the best out of any given situation. Good or bad.

“Off the court, I love to watch other sports like rugby.” “My other passion is cooking. I like to experiement and try different dishes.” 9. Apart from tennis being your passion, what else has kept you sane away from the court? Off the court, I love to watch other sports like rugby, the previous world cup was truly entertaining and big ups to South Africa for representing like they did! I’m a big Manchester United fan in football and will not comment on the team’s current performance (laughs). My other passions involve cooking. I like to experiment and try different dishes. I love reading because it always feeds my brain with more knowledge. I enjoy learning something new. One can never get too comfortable when it comes to knowledge. So I would say, I’m always trying to improve myself.

10. Firslty Kudos to you for completing your bachelor’s degree during your playing days, as I’m sure your training schedule was intense. How important was getting an education for you? Drake University is actually a private school in the mid-west with only about 5000-6000 students.It’s very tough to get into but luckily my tennis ability opened the door for me (laughs). The level of education offered by the school is exceptional and with the small amount of students in classes, allowes more contact between the students and professors. This type of set up was the perfect fit for me.

11. So you attended Drake University? Tell us about that college experience from a student perspective. College campus life was amazing. It was definitely a conducive environment to get a solid education. Because it’s a small school, as a student you get so much out of interacting closely with the professors and one can learn a lot from them.

“College campus life was amazing. It was definitely a conducive environment to get a solid education.”

12. Tell us a little bit about the college parties you attended while at Drake University. How crazy did they get? Keep it PG haha! Well I’ll start by saying that students have their fun in American universities. Many of them are living away from home for the first time ever so they embrace that freedom whole heartedly. I certainly can’t go into detail as to what happens but the parties are epic! (Laughs) The upside though is that by attending fraternity and sorority parties, great connections and relationships can be established with athletes from other sporting codes. So I would say embracing the party life in college has its advantages.

13. Alright, back to sports, so could you tell us about the best tennis tournament you have ever played in? Where was it? The best tournament I played in was the Davis cup, representing Botswana. The honor of representing my home country is a memory I will cherish forever.

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14. In your opinion, where is the best tennis arena based? The best arena in my opinion, is the flushing Meadows-Corona Park, New York, where the US open is held. The atmosphere there is unbelievable.

“The way he approaches the game is something I’ve admired about him since I was a kid.” 15. Who is the one tennis player you’d love to have a conversation with? Roger Federer. I feel that he is the complete tennis player for sure. The way he approaches the game is something I’ve admired about him since I was a kid.

16. How are the development structures within the sport back in your home country of Botswana? Do you see yourself getting involved some how? Even from a distance? Ive identified some African talent that came to compete here in the US recently. Obviously resources are still limited back home but the future is looking good for players back home. I am certainly looking to getting involved and I’ve been in contact with people back home to try organize for more Botswana players to get opportunities to play in some tournaments here, in the USA.

17. Let’s talk about life after tennis, do you feel like the game helped you make the necessary connections? Having a passion for the game made it easier for me to make the necessary connection for the business world. Learning from coaches and how they did things, gave me the tools I need to pursue my business in coaching. Using the network I’ve built over the years to get opportunities has been a major blessing.

18. What business venture(s) are you currently involved in now? “Using the network I’ve built over the years to get opportunities has been a major blessing.” My business venture currently is coaching tennis players privately and I help them fine tune the technicalities of their game.

19. What do you hope to achieve personally within the next 10 years? Where do you invision yourself? Well I’ve worked with a lot of players that have turned pro so I definitely want to keep that going and work to help more guys and girls get to the next level with their game. I’m looking to branch off and establish a solid tennis program back home and offer more kids an opportunity to come and play, as well as get an education out here in the USA.

20. What advice would you give a youngster from Botswana who is walking a similar path as you? What kind of pointers would you give him? The best advice I can offer a youngster coming up is to establish a high work ethic. They have to be resilient and consistent with honing their tennis skill and to work hard at school to ensure that the education part of their life is sorted out. A sports career is temporary but with an education, there’s no limit to what a kid coming up, can achieve.

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My brother, thank you so much for taking the time to answer our 20 questions. Tell us, are there any platforms that people can reach or follow your business ventures eg. Twitter, Instagram, facebook or websites that people can view? Thank you so much for having me, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always good to share our stories as they can inspire others. People can find my Instagram page @improvetodaytennis where I share my love for the game and lessons that I do. The website will be live soon and the link will be available on my Instagram page.

Above picture: Bokang Setshogo and his Drake University teammates after winning the championship.

Lamelo Ball blueprint high school b

The direction that high school basketball is headed will be an interesting one following the successful stints both achieved by Lamelo Ball and RJ Hampton. Both of these young men lit up the arenas when representing their respectful teams in New Zeland and Australia. As a result of this, the NBL in Australia has become a new frontier for aspiring professioanl baskeball players. The best part about it, is that they get to prepare for the NBA draft as professionals, while playing in a foreign country. The benefits of going this route definitely out weigh the risks. By playing abroad, straight out of high school, these young men mature as young adults by becoming emotionally independent and financially independent. The environment within professional sports can be cut throat and guys usually lose themselves when thrust in at a young age. I am pretty sure that other up and coming highschool players have witnessed how beneficial the experience was for Lamelo and will possibly look to mimic and follow the same route. Though I am strongly, a fan of going down the less travelled road, I do think top high school talent still needs to conduct an honest self assessment before making this decision.

Educaton is important and leaving school early to pursue a career in sport in considered risky. Certain players need to attend college to get that qualification behind their name and develop further as players, before entering the draft. As glamorous as professional sports is, not every American boy or girl makes it to the NBA or WNBA. This is one of those personal decisions that should be made by the individual solely based on what the best fit is, for them. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also amazing to witness the NBAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s reaction to the coutryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s top young talent being lured down under and Europe. By offereing lucrative G-league contracts to top high school talent is definitely a brilliant strategy in keeping these young men within US shores. Acceptional talent that is projected to go all the way deserves these kind of contracts that will not only change their lives, but also the lives of their loved ones. The NCAA should be feeling the added pressure of losing these top prospects to the professional leagues, at such a young age, all because of refusing to pay student athletes. It will be interesting to see if the tug-of-war regarding this topic will ever end. -EditorMore info: www.lonzowire.usatoday.com

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How to keep in shape as a retired athlete.

ne of the toughest challenges sportsmen and women face once retired, is the daunting of task maintaining that perfect body. Time and time again we witness our favourite retired athletes share on social media, how they wish they could reclaim the physique they once had. During the height of their careers, athletes can get away with eating anything they desire with no conseqesnces of weight gain. Intense and regular training helps the body burn all those calories. The mistake generally made by most athletes is continuing with these kind of eating habbits post their playing careers. With the body not getting the regular intense exercise and acivity, the body begins to change shape and this becomes a slippery slope one struggles to come back from. These kind of changes can have negative effects on the retired individual’s psyche. When one ‘lets themselves go’, it can impact their self-confidence the opposite way to what it used to be. Even the late Kobe Bryant admitted that once he retired from professional basketball, he allowed himself to pick up weight to a point where, it started to make him self conscious. That’s when he knew it was to put in work again. The best thing any former male or female athlete can do upon retiring, is to maintain some sort of fitness level. As tough as it is, this kind of motivation has to be intrinsic because no one keeps tabs on their conditioning anymore. There are no more coaching staff, nutrionists or teammates to hold one accountable. The motivation should simply be about healthy living and wellness. We suggest a three day training program to help former athletes keep in shape.

-Editor17

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3-Day gym program

Day1: Upperbody

Day2: Lower body

Day3: Full body

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3-Day gym program Day1

Upper-body weight training Exercise

Sets

Reps

Bench Press

4 sets

8 reps

Barbell Back rows

4 sets

8 reps

Incline bench press

3 sets

8 reps

Wide grip pull-ups

3 sets

8 reps

Core: Plank pose

4 sets

60 seconds

Sets

Reps

Day 2 Lower-body weight training Exercise Squat

4 sets

8 reps

Hamstring curls

4 sets

8 reps

Dumbbell Lunges

3 sets

8 reps

Deadlifts

3 sets

8 reps

5 sets

20 reps

Core: Crunches

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Day 3 Upper-body weight training Exercise

Sets

Reps

Shoulder press

4 sets

8 reps

Bicep curls

4 sets

8 reps

Push- ups

3 sets

20 reps

Tricep push downs Core: Jack knives

3 sets

10 reps

4 sets

25 reps