Saint Mary's Magazine Winter 2003 - Saint Mary's University of ...

SPORTS NEWS
Athletes
no longer
shut out
from study
abroad
Construction begins on three-story
science building (1955)
34
Basketball squad makes its annual
flying tour in 16-passenger DC-3 (1955)
33
One of the benefits of being a
student at Saint Mary’s
University is the opportunity to take
part in the school’s study-abroad
program.
Being able to spend a semester
in such places as London and
Florence is an added bonus to any
student’s collegiate studies.
Unless, of course, you are a
student-athlete at Saint Mary’s.
Because the semesters abroad
conflict with many varsity sports
seasons, most student-athletes have
to make a choice — leave for
overseas, and miss half of their
athletic season, or stay and
compete, and miss out on the
opportunity to study in a foreign
country.
Not much of an option.
Until now.
Thanks in large part to the
efforts of coaches Jeff Halberg and
Kim Fierke, SMU student-athletes
can finally have the best of both
worlds.
This past summer, almost
immediately after the May
commencement, members of the
SMU volleyball, men’s and women’s
basketball, and men’s and women’s
tennis teams boarded planes bound
for Italy and England to take part in
the school’s inaugural Athletics
Study Abroad Program.
“Both Jeff and I had had
experiences doing this type of thing
at schools before we came to Saint
Mary’s. We felt we could make it
work here, too,” said Fierke, noting
that the plan took nearly two-and-ahalf
years to transform from a
pipedream into reality. “So many of
our student-athletes have had to
“What really made it special
was the opportunity to
combine so many different
parts of collegiate life into
one trip — the academic
side, the athletic side and
the tourist side.”
wrestle with the decision of study
abroad or playing (varsity) athletics.
Many of our seasons overlap,
especially in the winter.
“By creating this program,
students don’t have to make that
choice — they can do both.”
And so the SMU tennis teams
spent two weeks in England, while
the volleyball and basketball teams
did a week-plus tour of Italy.
“It was a great experience,”
said SMU men’s basketball coach
Bob Biebel ’79, who took six of his
basketball players on the trip —
which included four games against
Italian club teams. “What really
made it special was the opportunity
to combine so many different parts
of collegiate life into one trip — the
academic side, the athletic side and
the tourist side.”
In preparation
for their trip — which
is strictly optional
and funded by the
individuals
themselves — each
student-athlete was
required to attend a
six-week class, which
helped prepare them
for life outside the
United States. The
class included presentations and
lectures on the Italian and English
cultures.
“The trip really was a great
learning experience,” said Biebel.
“Sure, we had a lot of time to just
be tourists, but we also learned a
lot about the Italian culture.
Besides, who said learning can’t
be fun?”
22 SAINT MARY’S MAGAZINE WINTER 2003