Left: Narre Warren’s Dylan Chapman was recently part of Victoria’s winning under 12 basketball team at the Pacific School Games in Melbourne.By Rebecca Fraser
The 12-year-old student at Kambrya College in Berwick has been playing since he was six and was a member of the gold medal-winning team at the games.
He competed in the Victorian 12 years-and-under boys’ basketball team, which remained undefeated during the week-long event.
The team won all nine games, beating Western Australia, ACT, New Caledonia, Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia and the Northern Territory.
Dylan plays for Dandenong Rangers and said his idols were American basketball greats Michael Jordan and Shaquille O’Neal.
He said he hoped to become a professional basketballer as he loved playing in front of a big crowd.
“The crowd was good and I got to meet people from all different states and made friends with people from Queensland and South Australia.
“We beat the ACT by two points — that was the closest match.
“There were thousands of people watching and I cannot wait to play for the under 18 side,” he said.
Principal of Kambrya College Ian Mckenzie said Dylan’s friendship, encouragement and support to his fellow teammates had been commendable all week.
“Dylan showed great respect towards all officials and opponents, and proved himself to be an elite sportsperson,” he said.
