Mustang Spotlight: Alimamy Koroma and Chen Abramovich
7/22/2020 6:03:00 PM | General, Men's Basketball, Women's Volleyball
International student-athletes pursue their dreams to Cal Poly
Student-athletes from all over the world have come to the United States in hopes of competing at a high level in their sport as well as in the classroom. Cal Poly has seen a plethora of international student-athletes come in and out of Mott Athletics Center, forever leaving their legacies as Mustangs.
Recent news concerning the validity of foreign student visas in the wake of virtual education resulted in a short period of time during which international students were unsure if they could remain in the United States or would ultimately have to return to their home countries. The Trump Administration has since rescinded the proposed rule, therefore allowing student visas to stand regardless of the format of classes in which these students are enrolled.
Cal Poly's women's volleyball program has added a new member for the upcoming season, Chen Abramovich. Abramovich is originally from Kfar Saba, Israel, and from an early age, Abramovich knew that volleyball was her passion, and her skills could take her far in life.
After knowing her father played professional volleyball in Israel and then tagging along to watch her older sister at her practices, Chen was itching to get on the court.
"I came home and I was like, 'Dad, I want to play, I want to play!' So we started playing every day in our backyard, and then one day at my sister's practice they were missing one person and the coach was like, 'Hey, do you want to play with us for just one game?' and I fell in love just like that," Abramovich explained.
Abramovich came to the United States in 2018 to pursue her dreams, but that decision wasn't the easiest, since every person in Israel over the age of 18 must serve in the national army. Serving her country is a big deal to Abramovich, and leaving early to pursue volleyball was a decision that she didn't want to regret.
"If I choose to play, then I really need to play for as long as I can. I don't want to give up my army experience, which is a big thing in Israel. If I chose volleyball, I have to know that it is what I am going to do with my life. I can't just say I'll skip the army and then quit."
Abramovich has now completed her two years of required service and plans to pursue volleyball as long as she can. In coming to compete in the NCAA, Abramovich chose the University of Nebraska for her first two years, but there she found herself wanting to leave the Midwest and play for a school in California. With the help of Cal Poly Volleyball's recruiting coordinator, Jason Borchin, and strong urging by a friend, Abramovich landed at Cal Poly.
"It just sounded right. From the first phone call, he was 100-percent honest, which I loved, because some coaches just tell you what you want to hear. He made it clear about what they expect ... and it just sounded like an honest and real place," she stated.
Entering into her redshirt sophomore season, the 5-foot-6 libero/defensive specialist is looking to help the team win its third Big West Championship in four years.
Meanwhile, the Cal Poly men's basketball team is also looking forward to the return of 6-8 sophomore forward Alimamy Koroma. From Freetown, Sierra Leone, Koroma found basketball from a young age after growing to six feet tall at just 11 years old.
With his love for the game and his staggering height, it was hard to deny his future on the court. "People were telling me, 'You've got to play basketball, you've got to play basketball,' so I started playing and I got really good really fast and I just fell in love with it," he said.
Basketball became Koroma's path in life when he was recruited out of a Division 2 league in his home country. He was then offered a scholarship to come to the U.S. and play high school basketball at Prolific Prep in Napa starting at the end of his freshman year.
After excelling in his career at Prolific Prep, Ali was looking for a way to continue to pursue basketball. This led him to coming on a visit to Cal Poly while still in high school. That visit solidified to Ali that San Luis Obispo would be his new home away from home.
"Sierra Leone is on the coast, so I really like the beach. I just came here and they took me to the beach and it was really nice and sunny, kind of reminds me of back home. I just loved it. It's also a great academic school, and I really like the coaches and I just thought it was a perfect fit."
Koroma and Abramovich are two of 23 international student-athletes on the rosters of Cal Poly teams during the 2019-20 academic year. (Men's soccer and men's tennis led the way, each with five student-athletes.)
Ali has not been back to Sierra Leone since he first came to pursue his high school career. This year makes five years in the United States for Ali, and his career at Cal Poly is almost halfway completed. With three more years in the NCAA, Koroma is looking to help the Mustangs to a Big West Championship this next season.
"I never really thought I'd be able to play basketball outside of Sierra Leone, but now I am the first Sierra Leonean to ever play Division I basketball."
As the only person from his country playing in the NCAA's top basketball division, Alimamy is leading the way and an inspiration for people everywhere. If he were to pursue a professional basketball career in the United States following his Cal Poly campaign, Alimamy would be the first Sierra Leonean to play in the NBA.
@CPMustangs • #RideHigh
Maia Dvoracek is a fourth-year Cal Poly journalism major in addition to being an All-American with the Cal Poly volleyball program.
Photos courtesy of Owen Main (fansmanship.com) / Nebraska Athletics (huskers.com) ©
Recent news concerning the validity of foreign student visas in the wake of virtual education resulted in a short period of time during which international students were unsure if they could remain in the United States or would ultimately have to return to their home countries. The Trump Administration has since rescinded the proposed rule, therefore allowing student visas to stand regardless of the format of classes in which these students are enrolled.Cal Poly's women's volleyball program has added a new member for the upcoming season, Chen Abramovich. Abramovich is originally from Kfar Saba, Israel, and from an early age, Abramovich knew that volleyball was her passion, and her skills could take her far in life.
After knowing her father played professional volleyball in Israel and then tagging along to watch her older sister at her practices, Chen was itching to get on the court.
"I came home and I was like, 'Dad, I want to play, I want to play!' So we started playing every day in our backyard, and then one day at my sister's practice they were missing one person and the coach was like, 'Hey, do you want to play with us for just one game?' and I fell in love just like that," Abramovich explained.
Abramovich came to the United States in 2018 to pursue her dreams, but that decision wasn't the easiest, since every person in Israel over the age of 18 must serve in the national army. Serving her country is a big deal to Abramovich, and leaving early to pursue volleyball was a decision that she didn't want to regret.
"If I choose to play, then I really need to play for as long as I can. I don't want to give up my army experience, which is a big thing in Israel. If I chose volleyball, I have to know that it is what I am going to do with my life. I can't just say I'll skip the army and then quit."
Abramovich has now completed her two years of required service and plans to pursue volleyball as long as she can. In coming to compete in the NCAA, Abramovich chose the University of Nebraska for her first two years, but there she found herself wanting to leave the Midwest and play for a school in California. With the help of Cal Poly Volleyball's recruiting coordinator, Jason Borchin, and strong urging by a friend, Abramovich landed at Cal Poly.
"It just sounded right. From the first phone call, he was 100-percent honest, which I loved, because some coaches just tell you what you want to hear. He made it clear about what they expect ... and it just sounded like an honest and real place," she stated.
Entering into her redshirt sophomore season, the 5-foot-6 libero/defensive specialist is looking to help the team win its third Big West Championship in four years.
Meanwhile, the Cal Poly men's basketball team is also looking forward to the return of 6-8 sophomore forward Alimamy Koroma. From Freetown, Sierra Leone, Koroma found basketball from a young age after growing to six feet tall at just 11 years old.
With his love for the game and his staggering height, it was hard to deny his future on the court. "People were telling me, 'You've got to play basketball, you've got to play basketball,' so I started playing and I got really good really fast and I just fell in love with it," he said.
Basketball became Koroma's path in life when he was recruited out of a Division 2 league in his home country. He was then offered a scholarship to come to the U.S. and play high school basketball at Prolific Prep in Napa starting at the end of his freshman year.
After excelling in his career at Prolific Prep, Ali was looking for a way to continue to pursue basketball. This led him to coming on a visit to Cal Poly while still in high school. That visit solidified to Ali that San Luis Obispo would be his new home away from home.
"Sierra Leone is on the coast, so I really like the beach. I just came here and they took me to the beach and it was really nice and sunny, kind of reminds me of back home. I just loved it. It's also a great academic school, and I really like the coaches and I just thought it was a perfect fit."
Koroma and Abramovich are two of 23 international student-athletes on the rosters of Cal Poly teams during the 2019-20 academic year. (Men's soccer and men's tennis led the way, each with five student-athletes.)
Ali has not been back to Sierra Leone since he first came to pursue his high school career. This year makes five years in the United States for Ali, and his career at Cal Poly is almost halfway completed. With three more years in the NCAA, Koroma is looking to help the Mustangs to a Big West Championship this next season.
"I never really thought I'd be able to play basketball outside of Sierra Leone, but now I am the first Sierra Leonean to ever play Division I basketball."
As the only person from his country playing in the NCAA's top basketball division, Alimamy is leading the way and an inspiration for people everywhere. If he were to pursue a professional basketball career in the United States following his Cal Poly campaign, Alimamy would be the first Sierra Leonean to play in the NBA.
@CPMustangs • #RideHigh
Maia Dvoracek is a fourth-year Cal Poly journalism major in addition to being an All-American with the Cal Poly volleyball program.
Photos courtesy of Owen Main (fansmanship.com) / Nebraska Athletics (huskers.com) ©
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Volleyball
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