Amelia Keevil, member on the floor
Sport isn’t just about the physical attribute but also has a huge impact on mental health.
Amelia Keevil, 20, was one BCU’s Womens hockey members to be selected to represent the university at a 7-a-side tournament in Blackpool.
The hockey teams’s season was brought to an abrupt end due to the Covid-19 outbreak, meaning the trip to Blackpool was cancelled.
” I was pretty gutted, when you put all your hard work into university, competing will be my rearward afterwards. And now i feel like there is no reward and nothing to look forward too.” She said in response to the event being cancelled.
The four day tournaments in Blackpool was due to be played during the Easter weekend.
From going training four times a week and having weekly matches, she has realised the importance of physical activity and how much she misses her hockey family.
The whole team has been affected by the outbreak, especially her teammates who will be graduating this summer.
So their final competitive season has been brought to an end sooner they they would like.
During lock-down Amelia has been able to get active. But she expressed it doesn’t feel like it’s the same as being with teammates.
She has said the team have had a few Zoom meetings and FaceTime convocations to keep in contact with each other.
Going into university Amelia didn’t have any interests in joining a society.
During her first year of university she found it hard to make friends outside the classroom.
A lot of time was spent at home and to avoid becoming depressed, she made the decision to join the hockey team as it is something she has loved since school.
Amelia stated, “When you go home you have your parents to speak to but when you are at university your team is your family, and you go through so much together.”
She is currently in her second year at BCU studying Criminology with security studies.
Her advice to others, that are in similar conditions having to deal with assignments and exams is to:
- stick to a programme, knowing what you want to do everyday.
- write a check list
- reflect on the day and look at positives