Hoops Trotting: from Lebanon to NOLA
November 3, 2022
By Hannah Stoutmire, Sports Writer
Here’s the breakdown.
A five-hour flight from Lebanon to Brussels. Once in Brussels there is a one-hour layover. Once this hour goes by, back on the plane or 8 hours and 30 minutes to Washington D.C. One more layover for 3 hours and getting on the airplane for the last time for 5 hours to land in New Orleans.
This is the journey Yara Bouharb, the new freshman point guard on the Xavier women’s basketball team, had to take from her home country in Lebanon to her new home in New Orleans. Bouharb picked up her passion for basketball from seeing her brother and sister play it while she was young, and decided to start playing herself at the age of 10.
“I miss Lebanon every day. The United States has a completely different culture especially here at Xavier. So I’m learning about the culture and getting to know the people,” she said.
A question that many people bring to Yara is why Xavier? Why come 6,787 miles across the world to a small HBCU? Yara knew that the decision for the next phase in her life was important and she wanted to make sure that it was going to be the most beneficial to her. Coming to Xavier was a culture shock, she shared. It was difficult having to adapt to an entirely new culture coming from Lebanon, to being at an HBCU in New Orleans.
“Adapting to the culture here has been somewhat difficult because my culture is so different but I am surrounded with people that are helping make that process easier,” Bouharb said.
With Xavier being as heavily academically focused as it is, the neuroscience major knew that Xavier was going to push her, which was a big part of her decision.
“I knew Xavier was going to challenge me the most and set me up for success,” she said.
The rigorous classes students are required to take at Xavier can have a toll on their mental health and basketball is what she uses as her escape. The classes and the work that are required to succeed can be extremely draining, and being able to look forward to play the sport that she loves is what puts her at peace.
Between the busy day-to-day life of being a collegiate student-athlete, and trying to get used to the lifestyle of being a college student in general, Bouharb said she is learning to find balance.
“I have this 24-hour rule where everything that happens today, the good and the bad, does not roll over to tomorrow because tomorrow is a new day,” she said.
