Congratulations to our u16s baller – Josie Furner – who has won the award for London Young Person of the Year.
The award was presented from the organisation Levelling the Playing Field at a star studded event held in at the flagship DECATHLON store in Surrey Quays, London on 1st March 2023 and celebrated staff, role models, leaders and young people from across the LtPF network who have shown dedication, overcome adversity, inspired others and impacted positively on their community.
Josie Furner, Levelling the Playing Field’s 2023 London ‘Young Person of the Year,’ says the London Thunder Basketball Club are ‘like a second family.’
The 15 year old has played basketball at the club in Lewisham, south east London, for almost half her life. The sport and the supportive club environment have given her confidence, leadership skills, positive engagement and belief in her abilities on and off the court.
Josie and her sister Christabel started off participating in the club’s mixed community sessions, which are now part of the Levelling the Playing Field project.
A girls’ team was quickly built around Josie as coaches realised they needed to develop her notable ability. She is now captain of the Under-16s, plays for the club’s women’s team and represents London in national junior competitions. She is part of Basketball England’s ‘Aspire’ regional talent programme.
‘She has been a shining light to getting other girls involved and a great example to kids at that level,‘ said London Thunder coach Dejan Paunovic.
‘That purpose is the core of the club and the family,’ explained management team member Nikki Sealy. ‘Every young person in this community is vulnerable to being exploited or groomed. It’s not because you’ve got a lack of something or because you are disadvantaged that you could be vulnerable to that situation. Young people face that every day. They have to negotiate their way through social circles and peer groups. It’s not always easy.’
Nikki also praised Josie for responding strongly to the adversity of lockdown. She said: ‘Josie has stuck at basketball through Covid, which came at a bad time as she was flying on the Basketball England ‘Aspire’ programme. We were all impacted by having to shut down, but she came back stronger and I think that’s testament to her character. Without question, the team looks up to her. They rely on her calmness and incredible resilience. We know she’s got a great future ahead of her and it’s great she won this award. It is so well deserved. She is an ambassador for the club.’
Josie can be found at our club three or four times a week. She is taking a refereeing course, is a qualified table official and helps coach the younger players, working towards her ambition of becoming a coach one day.
Josie had the following to add:
‘When I first started here aged nine, I played a little bit with the U12 mixed team. I found it very intimidating playing with older boys but it was a good challenge and I enjoyed it because I loved the game of basketball so much. It definitely toughened me up a bit! Being at the club has definitely given me confidence. This season, I’ve been the captain of the U16s girls, so it has developed my leadership skills.’
‘London Thunder is like a second family to me. If I didn’t have it, I don’t know what I’d be doing now. I’ve grown with it and stayed persistent. It’s such a big part of my life.’
