Coach V Emphasizes the Importance of Women in Sports
By: Andrea Aruino
The battle between Iowa and South Carolina in the 2024 National Championship game amassed 18.9 million viewers. This set the record as the most watched basketball game since 2019, even surpassing the Men’s National Championship Game. Additionally, the WNBA regular season attracted over 54 million viewers and the WNBA Draft received over 2.45 million viewers. The list goes on proving that everyone watches women’s sports!
Women in sports is not a new phenomenon–but the world is watching like never before. Why could that be? It’s obvious, when time and money are invested in women’s sports, the tangible results become impossible to ignore. UPB is one building block that relentlessly aims to push for the exponential and imminent growth of women’s sports.
UPB’s Coach Veronica Barrot serves as one of the Player Development Coaches leading the upcoming 3rd-8th Grade All Girls Clinic on Saturday, March 15th at 3pm. Barrot was born and raised in San Lorenzo and has been playing basketball since the second grade, even playing college ball at the University of the Southwest in New Mexico. Just like most athletes, basketball meant watching the NBA or Men’s NCAA, there was rarely any conversation about what Diana Taurasi was doing or how Sue Bird was dominating at the time. Most eyes were on men’s basketball in the past but now a shift is being made.
It can be daunting to engage in such a male dominated sport, especially when most representation in the past has only highlighted successful men. Barrot aims to encourage girls to break through these barriers and channel their passion towards basketball to become the change they want to see. Before becoming a coach, she also found herself shying away from challenges and stressed a lot about confidence. Although she found that challenging herself was the only way she could grow which led her towards the opportunity of working at UPB as a coach.
In this role, she draws on her experience as a woman in sports to inspire and empower the next generation of female athletes. Barrot recognizes the importance of an All Girls Clinic and its part in creating community for girls who are eager to grow.
“As staff, we go above and beyond to create that safe space, and I try to relate to them by sharing my experiences. Letting the girls know that they’re all aiming for the same goal and will get there with consistent hard work is always encouraging,” Barrot said.
What Barrot notices in these training sessions is that they’re able to find comfort seeing a pool of other girls who love the game as much as them. She is not only helping to foster athletic development but also helps these girls to build strong relationships with each other. The clinic becomes more than just a training ground for basketball; it cultivates representation in the sport and supports the fact that girls are more than capable of taking their love and skill to the court no matter what level they’re starting at.
In these All Girls Clinics, Barrot likes to view the girls as all of her younger sisters and is enthusiastic about coaching them. The All Girls Clinic focuses on fundamentals, ball handling, shooting, and many more important skills. The true distinction lies in the environment created by the coaches and athletes.
“I love seeing how excited the girls get for each other, especially when a girl makes a basket. They create such a positive environment and always cheer one another on! It’s always nice to see all the girls smiling and laughing throughout the clinic,” Barrot said.
Women and girls have always thrived despite the challenges enforced by society. Barrot and the entire UPB team push these young athletes to work toward their goals by creating spaces that allow them to grow side by side. Women's sports have always been present, and they will remain a force to be reckoned with for generations to come.
