For Sergei Starodoubtsev for the last 3 years, the only way for him to experience the NFL was to watch then highlights of the JuJu Smith-Schuster and other such players on social media.
But when the 17 years old boy found himself wearing the clothes of the sport with the wide receiver of the Pittsburgh Steelers he could not believe himself.
Starodoubtsev said, “Smith-Schuster is such a great athlete and an amazing player. I am trying to succeed in the NFL career as well and to play on the big TV and in the NFL and want to be in the same situation as him.”
Starodoubtsev at a height of 6 feet 3 inches while weighing 238 pounds is exactly the kind of the prospect that the NFL recruiters across the United States are looking for. The only disadvantage for Starodoubtsev is that he lives all the way in East London where his opportunities to play in this All-American sport are limited.
For this Starodoubtsev was at the new Stadium of the Tottenham Hotspur this weekend along with 150 other such hopeful youths that were looking to get one of the 80 allotted spots for the inaugural NFL academy that will start this fall.
NFL has been applying its games in London since the year 2007 and now they want to leave an even more lasting impression in this city. They are hoping to do this by not only identifying but also cultivating the youthful new British talent.
Managing director of NFL UK named Alistair Kirkwood said, “The initial enrollment at the academy will have boys that are in the age group of 16 to 18 years and over the time girls will also be added.”
After a two week workout and interviews, 150 finalists were picked form the 1500 applicant for the spot in the academy. Nearly half of these finalists were from London while the rest were from other parts of Britain and also from other parts of Europe.
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