ZEPP FM 007 - Playing volleyball with Khmer Rouge soldiers in Cambodia with Senghay Ly

ZEPP FM | Sport psychology for athletes, coaches & future sport psychologists

Back in the early days of the Cambodian National Volleyball League – Disabled (CNVLD), Senghay was one of the first players to compete in the only volleyball league for disabled athletes in the world. His effort, his motivation and his determination helped him deal with his disability, social adversities, as well as several other challenges in his life. However, he never quit.

Senghay was a national team member of the Cambodian National Volleyball Team and competed in various international competitions. His effort, his motivation and his experiences helped him improve himself every day a bit more. After playing volleyball and studying Applied Economics in Cambodia, he was awarded the development scholarship at the University of Auckland/NZ, where he received the degree of Master of International Business only recently.

In today’s episode we look at Senghay’s history in playing volleyball, what it meant to him to play volleyball in the CNVLD, and what it felt like to represent Cambodia at World Cups. One topic we also discussed was what it was like to play together with former Khmer Rouge soldiers who arrested, tortured and probably executed Cambodian citizens between 1951 and 1991 – a topic that always interested me since I met Senghay and his fellow team mates in 2007.

After actively working together with the CNVLD between 2007 and 2010 it was a pleasure for me to talk to Senghay and hear about his own development as well as how some of my former athletes do today. He shares many great insights into sports and life as an athlete in a developing country, and what challenges he and his team mates had to face. All of this will probably leave you humble and grateful for the life you’re able to live today – and it will encourage you to look at obstacles and adversities from a different perspective. Thank you Senghay for sharing your experiences with us!