Local sports school alum first Calgarian to go in WNBA draft

A sports school in Calgary has helped make a local athlete’s pro basketball dream come true.

Yvonne Ejim, a Grade 12 student at Edge School, is the first basketball player from Calgary to be drafted into the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA).

Instilling academics, athletics and character into their curriculum, Ejim’s high school coach Eddie Richardson remembered that she, like so many other kids, had a dream of making it pro.

“She sacrificed partying, she sacrificed being outside, she was in the gym in the morning, she was in the weight room, she was in the classroom, she did her studies and she trained,” he said. “She committed herself to her goal, and now she’s been drafted into the WNBA.”

Elo Am, an Edge student in Grade 9, is also carving an athletic path for herself.

She feels the pressure to succeed as a teenager, knowing her family’s financial sacrifices, but says the school has kept her grounded in her focus by keying on the successes of today.

“Having my people, like my friends, my family, tell me that it’s ok or just to keep working, just to have that person that can just be on my side, that really helps,” she said.

Molding young minds like Elos is important for Richardson, and he begins by asking his athletes one question.

“What brings you joy outside of your sport?” 

“Because we don’t always land where we want to land, and I think it’s very important for them to understand it’s OK, and it’s important for them to know there’s other avenues to be successful and have a fulfilled life,” Richardson explained. 

Richardson continues to mentor Ejim while seeking out similar athletes in the process. His goal is to nurture other pro dreams, tempered with the realism of success.