ALI EMRE BILGIC 

This Sunday, I’ll be running in the İş Bankası Half Marathon. It’s not just another race for me. It’s part of a journey that will continue in November, when I plan to run my first full marathon. But more importantly, I’m running for KAÇUV — Kanserli Çocuklara Umut Vakfı — an organization that supports children with cancer and their families throughout incredibly difficult times. When I was younger, I went through two surgeries myself. Still, I remember just enough of that tim

Basketball has always been an important part of my life. It’s where I learned discipline, consistency, and how to be part of a team. Two weeks ago, I injured my thumb when the ball hit it the wrong way. Since then, I’ve been wearing a splint. I went back to practice yesterday, but I still couldn’t play. Today is one of the most important games of the season, and I won’t be on the court. Situations like this make you realize that not everything is in your control. You can prep

When Alperen Şengün was growing up in Giresun, he was not considered the typical prototype of a future NBA star. He was not the tallest kid at a young age, nor was he built like the traditional modern big man. But what he had was something harder to measure: feel for the game. Şengün began his professional career in Turkey at a young age. His breakout season came with Beşiktaş, where he won the Turkish League MVP award in 2021 at just 18 years old. That alone was historic. He

0.4 SecondsLast week, we were down by one point with only a few seconds left on the clock. I had the ball at the top of the key, and my lungs were burning from playing almost the entire game. In that split second, my brain didn’t consciously think about the textbooks I’d been reading or the online finance modules I’d been finishing late at night. But looking back at that moment, I realized it was the most intense lesson in microeconomics I’ve ever had. Most people think econo

November was a revealing month in the Turkish Basketball Super League, as the standings began to stabilize and several teams showed clearer identities. At the top of the table, Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe Beko and Bahçeşehir Koleji continued to separate themselves with strong offensive systems and consistent execution. Beşiktaş in particular demonstrated impressive momentum by combining spacing, efficient guard play and balanced scoring, while Fenerbahçe’s EuroLeague-level roster qu

Recent betting and match-fixing investigations in Turkish football, where more than 100 players were suspended and several referees were taken into custody, show that the problem is not only about individual wrongdoing but also about deeper economic and behavioral dynamics within the sport. When players, especially those in lower leagues, face strong short-term financial incentives while earning relatively modest salaries, the reward and risk balance becomes distorted and une

Basketball is often associated with talent. Height, athleticism, speed, or shooting ability usually get the most attention. But over time, one thing becomes increasingly clear: improvement is not only about talent. It is also about mindset. Psychologist Carol Dweck introduced the concept of a growth mindset — the belief that abilities can improve through effort, learning, and persistence. In sports, this idea becomes especially powerful. Players with a fixed mindset may see m

Split-Second Choices and Second Thoughts: How Kahneman Explains a Sports JourneyIn his groundbreaking work on human cognition, psychologist Daniel Kahneman introduces two modes of thinking: System 1, which is fast, intuitive, and emotional, and System 2, which is slower, more deliberate, and analytical. While these systems guide everything from daily habits to financial choices, they also shape the unpredictable world of sports — and the decisions athletes make under pressure

I completed the Sports Marketing certification from Northwestern. I dived into how sports teams, like my favorite Fenerbahçe, build strong fan engagement and brand loyalty. The course covered strategies that teams and leagues use to market themselves globally, focusing on sponsorships, fan experiences, and digital marketing. There were homework and while working on them I had the chance to reflect on how Fenerbahçe uses its passionate fan base to create impactful campaigns an

I've become the captain of Lima Sports Club as of this season of 2024-2025 and I'm super excited about it. Just recently, I've learned that we will be joining the European Youth Basketball League again, but it'll be different for me this year as the captain of the team because this role will give me even more responsibilities. We'll compete in Warsaw, Poland during 7-10 Dec 2024 and in the new year we'll be in Budapest, Hungary. We were again in Budapest last year and then in

I attended IMG Academy's 3 week long basketball camp and I enjoyed it a lot. To tell the truth, it was a very intense cam p because we were trained by the current coaches of the IMG teams. I was glad to have this experience because this showed that IMG was taking it seriously and did not em ploy new people to manage the summer camp but instead the real coaches were they to train us. Indeed I as not only trained in basketball playing skills but also in mental conditioning, psy

I attended the EYBL tournament this year like I did last year, but this time I was the captain of the Lima Sports Club U-16 basketball team. As a team we were there for four days between 30th of January and 2nd of February and this time we were quite lucky with the weather, which allowed as to take the boat tour on the River Tuna. On top of this, we won the tournament at the end of a series of four games.