Personal Statement
My name is Sara Iverson and I am 16 years old. I've lived in Egypt all my life. My dad is American and my mom is Egyptian. My dad was the middle east photographer for Time Magazine for over 25 years and now he does commercial and fine arts work. That's how he met my mom.
I started competitive tennis when I was 11, and I've been in love with tennis since. I just won the U18 tournament in Palm Hills, 6th of October City, Egypt in late August and also reached the final in the Cairo Stadium Tournament in Cairo, Egypt last July. I play in the Gezira Sporting Club Tennis Team, considered the best competitive Tennis Club in the country (and perhaps in the region). Gezira Club has won 6 out of the last 10 National League Tournaments, and I had the privilege to play in the finals doubles match this year and won.
I am trilingual, fluent in French, English and Arabic. I'm currently doing the IB program in french. I also skipped a year, so I am younger than all my fellow classmates. Academics has always been one of my main concerns, right next to tennis. I have a very busy routine; I go to school from 8 to 3:30, then i take the bus from school to the tennis courts. It takes a whole hour to get there because of the Cairo traffic. Then I start tennis training from 4:30 to 5:30, then I have team training from 5:30 to 7, then I have fitness training 5 times a week from 7 to 8. It takes me another hour to get home so I'm usually home around 9 or 9:30. Then I start studying. I am very thankful for everything my family has done and given to me in order to keep up with this daily routine.
One of the advantages of having such a routine was me learning time management skills. Time for me is everything. Instead of having breaks at school, I study and try to finish my homework. When I'm in the bus, I use the precious hour I have a rest, listen to music, maybe study etc. Of course, I do spend some time with my family everyday. Oddly enough, I enjoy being busy better than being lazy. I enjoy learning, I adore my sport and I appreciate everything my family has done for me. So I strongly think that organizing time is a key factor to happiness and success.
I hope you enjoy my video and don't hesitate to request more information!
Sara
