Gary Hines (Atlanta, Ga.) is entering his second year on the USA Team Handball Men’s National Team and he has already made a name for himself as one of the best male players in the country. Hines won USA Team Handball’s Male Athlete of the Year award as a rookie, helping the U.S. men to a bronze medal at the 2003 Pan American Games as the squad’s leading scorer.
Hines was 14 when he started playing the sport, and he decided just a year ago that he wants to make team handball his career. But he knows the sacrifices that must be made, and he contends that hard work got him where he is and will take him where he’s going.
"I just keep working at it, and everything is coming together for me," Hines says.
The youngest member of the national team, Hines, 20, claims that his age was no hindrance during his first season. His accomplishments can attest to that. In just one year on the Men’s National Team, he has compiled an impressive resume. His excellent work ethic and eagerness to improve are the keys to his success. Hines says that he doesn’t worry about winning and losing, he just gives his all every time he steps onto the court.
"I just go out there and play and the outcome is whatever it is."
Aside from being a member of the Men’s National Team, Hines teaches others how to play his sport at the Matthews Boys and Girls Club near his home. He is also a full-time student at Georgia Perimeter College majoring in business management. Though he works and travels around the world competing, school takes precedence. Hines arranges his schedule so that he doesn’t miss more than a week of school at a time.
"Most of the time I have to plan my schedule around school," states Hines whose job, athletic career and social life also fit into his agenda. "Everything else gets worked in somewhere."
However important school may be, Hines has also learned a lot from playing team handball. He had many new experiences in 2003, and his second season promises to have its firsts as well. The 2004 Team Handball National Championships, Hines’ first, is May 7-9 in Houston, Texas, and he is spending his every waking moment preparing. With the pressure of a superior season to live up to, he is determined to prove that his talent and hard work are improving with age.
Just a few years ago Hines was dreaming of being where he is now, on the USA Team Handball Men’s National Team. Having accomplished that goal, he is looking to the future and hoping to play professionally one day. Hines is always happy to give advice to the children he teaches and anyone else whose goal is to become an elite athlete.
"Don’t be afraid to try a sport that’s not popular. You might just like it," Hines offers. "Just work hard and stick with what you’re good at."
Most aspiring athletes hope to be the next face on the cover of Sports Illustrated, but Hines knows that there are many other roads that can lead an athlete to success. Though it may not be the most well-known sport, team handball has proven to be rewarding for him. Hines has made lasting friendships and gained a world of experience in his rookie season. Every Tuesday he practices with his teammate and best friend at the Boys and Girls Club where he works, and he shares a classroom with other teammates as well, proving that the benefits of playing sports reach far beyond the boundaries of the court.
Hines has traveled around the world competing, but contends that his favorite place is the Dominican Republic, where the men’s team vied for a spot at the 2004 Olympic Games. He says, "It was a fun experience." Though they did not qualify for Athens, the U.S. players are already looking to Beijing in 2008.
One of the youngest players in the sport at the national level, Hines will no doubt enjoy many other traveling opportunities and much more success. For now, his focus is on Nationals. And after May? Hines says his long-term goal is the Olympic Games, of course, because "Who wouldn’t want to compete at the Olympics?"
