Photo provided to Hangzhoufeel
Story
By Lyu Weiyi
It is uncommon to see such spacious pitches in the shopping malls of a metropolis. A youth soccer academy, situated on the top of an arcade in Hangzhou, was recently established by Sipan Petrosyan from Armenia.
"I started my formal football training when I was five," Sipan told us with a nostalgic smile, "and it was my father, a football enthusiast, who led me onto this path." Since then, he has formed an indissoluble relationship with football and considered it his lifelong career.
Highly talented in the sport, Sipan used to play professional matches in the Armenian League. Despite of the ankle injuries he got in competitions, his passion for football never faded. Soon afterwards, he decided to become a football coach. He managed to pass the UEFA A license evaluation, the second-highest license in the world. During the nine-year coaching career, he acquired expertise from numerous soccer clubs, such as Urartu Professional Football Club.
Sipan came to Hangzhou in 2018, and later came up with the idea of coaching youth football in China. Cooperating with the Hangzhou government, he has helped children in many public schools take their first steps into football.
"In my life, I have continuously challenged the limit and improved myself. Now I want to develop youth football in China and build my academy here." Sipan has already made his first move -- opening an academy in the Binjiang district of Hangzhou.
Every weekend sees kids aged 6-12 running and laughing on the soccer field of Sipan's academy, wearing uniforms with their names and favorite numbers. Unlike the tight training schedules of most youth academies, Sipan guides them through one-on-one offensive and defensive drills, improving their passing and receiving skills by practicing basic movements. During the break, all the kids would sit in a circle on their footballs, watching Sipan demonstrate dribbling skills.
"We do not only teach them how to play football but share with them our personalities and show them how to make friends, respect each other, respect the coaches and the opponents," said Sipan.
Sipan placed benches along the pitch, enabling parents to accompany their children and cheer them up. When Ilenia fell, Sipan quickly ran to pick her up and patted the dust off her. Ilenia's parents were there to encourage her, "Come on, brave girl! Smile and keep going!"
It was after watching Sipan's videos on the social media platforms such as Tik Tok, Facebook, and Instagram that Illenia's parents decided to send her and her brother Alexander to this academy. The twins have not only built up their physiques but also gained friendship here.
"Sipan knows how to guide the kids step by step so that they will not feel stressed or lose confidence," said the father of the young player Baozai. As the captain of a Hangzhou football team, he met Sipan while playing a game before placing his trust on Sipan's hands.
As the youngest child in the class, Phoenix sometimes finds it difficult to catch up with the other team members. His mother, Ms. Zhou, used to send him to other football training classes, but the gap between him and the other kids almost made him frustrated. "But here, when my son cannot keep up, Sipan will put him on his shoulders and get him to teamwork on the pitch. He is very thoughtful! Players at this academy are like a family." Ms. Zhou said.
"It is a great pleasure to work with Sipan!" Another coach, Artash, hails from the same country as Sipan. Having previously worked in Chengdu, Artash is also an experienced coach and has been invited to the academy by Sipan after coming to Hangzhou and shared to him his plans of expanding to other Hangzhou districts and even cities or provinces in the future.
"Remember the most important thing -- believe in yourself! This is my motto which I always share with others. When someone says 'no' to me, I will tell them they can do it!"Sipan said with the self-assured smile he carries all the way to today.