Patrick Watene is an expat Kiwi who has been working as an executive and living in China for 13 years. He’s married with three sons, aged 19, 17, and 14. His wife, Petrice is a teacher at Western Academy of Beijing (WAB), and both of them are very active in sports and outdoor activities. In addition to this, they have been actively involved in their son’s sports, including participating as a coach for a number of their soccer and rugby teams. Until recently Watene coached rugby for Sports Beijing’s junior grades for around three years.
At what age did you start arranging athletic activities for your children? What were your considerations at that time?
Boys started to swim in New Zealand as toddlers. They have been involved in school sports since they were five years old. The key considerations were getting them active and social.
Was the sport their choice, or did you choose for them?
They chose soccer, cricket, and water polo, which is what most of their mates played at the time. Then they went onto rugby as their bodies developed and we considered it safe enough for them to do.
Is your child passionate about this sport?
They are crazy about rugby! Typical Kiwis!
How do you decide on a sport that suited their age, personality, and level of development?
Our key focus when they were young was active participation with their friends and of course, safety (rugby is a sport known for lots of physical contact).
What was your original reason for arranging sports for your children? After a period of time, for example, 1-2 years later, have your reasons changed? If so, how?
Initially, it was about active participation, developing socially, and learning teamwork. Over time, as they have gotten older, their competitive behavior has grown.
What was the first sport your children played? And do they still enjoy this sport now?
Soccer – they’ve since all grown up and play rugby now.
How much time do your children spend on sports every month?
Competitive sports – up to 20 hours per month including training.
Some parents are very ambitious about sporting success for their children, and push them hard. What’s your view on this?
I’ve always been keen for the children to develop healthy, competitive behavior.
How would you like your children to develop regarding sports in the future?
Be active, be competitive, and enjoy yourself.
What lessons do you think sports can teach your children that apply to life off the sports field?
Healthy bodies and healthy minds. Competition is good in life. Good sportsmanship is also important. Teamwork is equally as essential as the individual contribution to the team.
Both Zoe and her husband are working in the Internet industry. Their 11-year-old daughter, studying at a public school, is talented at making short videos, and runs her own Meipai (a popular video App) account. The family loves music, traveling, and skiing. The key word for their annual family trip: concerts! They love traveling around to experience great music. Their last trips were to Tokyo for Coldplay, and Hong Kong for Madonna.
At what age did you start arranging sports for your children? What were the considerations made at that time?
Since she was seven. Our consideration was simple, just to give her some exercise to improve her physical wellness.
Was the sport their choice, or did you choose for them?
We chose for her based on her interests and physical wellbeing.
Is your child passionate about this sport?
Yes, she is very into sports.
How do you decide on a sport that suited her age, personality, and level of development?
Mainly according to her ability. My daughter has very good balance, so we taught her rope skipping when she was five, skateboarding at six, swimming and dance at seven, figure skating at eight. Her focus has been on figure skating, skiing, and modern dancing since she was ten.
What was your original reason for arranging sports for your child? After a period of time, for example, 1-2 years later, have your reasons changed? If so, how?
The original reason, as I mentioned before, is to improve her physical wellness, it wasn’t a utilitarian thing like preparation for overseas education being taken into consideration.
These reasons haven’t changed. We introduced her to more sports as she grew older, but still, her interests came as our top priority. We want her to enjoy sports without any extra unnecessary pressure. Actually, the sports we chose for her are connected in some ways. For example, rope skipping and dancing improved her figure skating skills, and figure skating skills reversely helped her do better in skiing. She did well and gained more confidence as a person from these sports.
What was the first sport your child played? Were there any experiences during this period that made her might want to give up?
The first one she took seriously was skateboarding, and now she is focusing on figure skating, skiing, and modern dancing. No, I don’t think so. We never put pressure on her. Learning these sports improved her in various ways and also entitled her to have more experiences to share with her friends. The main motivation is that she really likes them.
How much do you spend annually on her sports training?
Around RMB 20,000.
How much time does your daughter spend on sports every week?
Two afternoons every weekend, plus six-hours of expert training.
There are many parents that attach a certain amount of pragmatism when it comes to choosing sports for their children. What do you think about this?
I am strongly against it. I think the negative effects vastly overweigh the benefits. The main point of sports is to enjoy it. So only true passion and interest for the sport should be the dominant consideration when choosing sports for your children. Besides that, their physical health and mental health is also very important.
Photos: Courtesy of Patrick Watene and Zoe Zeng
This article appeared on p40-41 beijingkids November 2017 issue.
Download your copy here.
