She Cranes Goal Shooter (GS) Mary Nuba Cholhok says that she has missed her son during this Covid19 induced lockdown.
Nuba is in United Kingdom where she is pursuing her studies (Business Administration) with Loughborough University, and playing for the side in English Netball Super League.
The Netball League was ended prematurely due to Covid19 pandemic but Nuba could not to return to Uganda to see her son and family.
“It was quite emotional for me to be in lockdown alone,” Nuba says in an interview with BBC.
“I took time, thinking I had coronavirus when I didn’t. At that point everyone was still confused, and so was I.
“It was quite a bit of a letdown to him, because he is constantly like, ‘Mum, when are you coming? We’re going to do this, and that, and that’. That was quite emotional for me as a mother.”
Mary Nuba. Courtesy
Born June 3, 1997 in Rumbek, South Sudan, Nuba and her family relocated to Uganda after the Dad passed away.
She attended St Mary’s SS in Kitende where she won two National Schools championship in 2013 and 2016 before joining NIC netball club.
She got pregnant while still at Secondary level and says that it has been determination that has driven her to this point.
“Having a kid, I was 20 years old and it felt like… wow it was tough. So I really had to take the step up, to become responsible, become a mother now, and also try to look out for his future.
“Some people would be like, ‘Oh, you need to be with your son, take care of him’, but if I stay, and if I don’t get my degree, if I don’t get my netball career or achieve something better, what would I show him? Like, ‘Son, I sacrificed this to get this’.”
Growing up, Nuba says that her parents (Mother and Uncle) never wanted her to join Netball as they wanted her to concentrate on books.
She explains: “They weren’t very happy about it, they just felt like it would distract me, my grades would drop down, so they were a little bit very harsh about it. Sometimes I would have to sneak out to play, and try to balance both.
“At certain points, someone discovers what they do best, at a certain age or level, so I decided to really stay in sport, because I felt like I had an opportunity to get a scholarship through sports.”
In December 2018, Nuba left Uganda to join Loughborough University and made her debut for Loughborough Lightening against the Wasps on January 5, 2019.
In Uganda, she had played Basketball for Nkumba University Lady Marines as well.
