KIDS NEWS
I Had a Dream
2020 was the year of the pandemic, a year with many challenges for everyone. As sometimes happens in life, moments of crisis also bring with them opportunities. That’s how it was for us, because in 2020 we started the Arlechinii Kids project.
Why did we want to start a new team? Why didn’t we choose to help an already existing rugby team? Why Harlequins and not a team with tradition? There are several answers, but perhaps the most important is that we wanted to continue the tradition of the “big” Harlequins, who, more than a rugby club, formed a real community. Rugby is definitely what brought us together, but many times the moments and experiences off the field were as powerful as those on the field.
Then we wanted to create an environment where children can move and play freely and where they have the opportunity to choose what they like to do more. For this reason, besides rugby, we play a lot of touch and we want this game to remain a constant component of the project. Being a simpler version of rugby, with fewer rules and requiring a different type of effort, touch is suitable both as an introductory game in rugby, but also as a game in itself, being more accessible to everyone, be they girls or boys.
It’s been almost 4 years since then, so how have things been going so far? Not all the time good. We would have liked to have more children in training, more coaches, other clubs to play matches with. But what made our journey more interesting were always the people next to us. Some of them took other paths, but that does not mean that we are less grateful to them or that the experiences lived together are less valuable. In addition, this makes us appreciate even more the present and those who are here now.
Where do we go from here? Well, also on the rugby field. Maybe we will be more or maybe we will be fewer, maybe we will be more organized (we hope so), maybe we will have more opponents, but as long as there are children running happily with a rugby ball in hand, the rest of the things are less important.
