German young people pay an inspiration visit to 3X3 Unites

7 May, 2026

How do you train young people to become youth leaders? And what is a role model? With these questions in mind, fourteen young people and two coaches from the German organisation RheinFlanke visited 3X3 Unites for an inspiration visit. Over two days, they got hands-on experience, took part in a workshop, and spoke with 3X3 Leaders from 3X3 Unites.“

Our slogan is not without reason Unite. Play. Empower,” says Maxi Sellering, Head of International Relations and Development at 3X3 Unites. “We like working with other organisations that share our values and that offer young people opportunities through sport, so they can create new perspectives.”

RheinFlanke is an NGO from Cologne that is focused on social work through sports and exercise. It serves as the motor of our educational work - as a low-threshold entry point to building up contact with the children and young people and to developing social skills. Within their European Erasmus+ project ‘BOOST’, they are running a programme, focusing for the first time specifically on training Youth Leaders, an approach that strongly connects with the 3X3 Leader Course. “We are currently setting up our first youth training programme. We would love to learn from the 3X3 Leader Course of 3X3 Unites and hear about their experiences,” says Marie Rückborn, one of the RheinFlanke coaches.

At the same time, the inspiration visit was also a great opportunity for the young people of 3X3 Unites to step up and show leadership. Interns Lotte Toornstra and Niccolò Lepore took charge of the event and designed the programme. “

It was really cool and very educational,” says Niccolò. “For me, it was the first time organising such a big event.”It was also new for Lotte. “Beforehand I was quite nervous, because I normally find it exciting to stand in front of a group,” she says. “But I really wanted to step out of my comfort zone and I also found it interesting to guide a group of young people. Especially because they came from abroad and spoke a different language.”

The two-day inspiration visit started at the 3X3 Unites office. There, 3X3 Leader Raul Villavicencio gave an introductory presentation about 3X3 Unites. After that, it was Lotte’s turn to lead the ‘role models’ workshop. “I let the young people think about who their role models are, what defines a role model, and whether they see themselves as one.”

Lotte quickly noticed that the young people really “switched on” during the workshop. “After I shared what a role model means to me and how I discovered that, the young people also wanted to share their personal stories. I thought that was really amazing to see. It became a very interactive session, where everyone dared to be vulnerable and listened to each other.”

One of the participants who shared his story was Nils Windrath. “I often heard others talk about having a role model, but I had never really thought about it myself,” he said. “But now that I think about it, my parents are my role models. For me, a role model is someone who takes responsibility and who you look up to, not because of status, but because of their behaviour and how they treat others.”

Lotte also shared how she realised she is a role model herself. “As a player for the Dutch 3x3 basketball team, children often ask for autographs. The first time that happened, I really thought: wow, there are actually people who look up to you,” says Lotte. “And what was nice during the workshop was that when I shared my story, other young people connected to it by saying, for example, that they are also a role model for their younger brother or sister at home.”

The second day took place in the Paper Dome. Here, the young people from Cologne saw the different activities 3X3 Unites organises at the indoor location, and 3X3 Leader Jaimy Jacott explained what it means to be a 3X3 Leader. Experiences were shared, the basic rules of 3x3 basketball were explained, and they also played the game themselves. “It was beautiful to see how quickly the young people connected with each other, despite the language barrier.”

After two enjoyable and educational days, the inspiration visit came to an end. “It was great to get a behind-the-scenes look at 3X3 Unites,” says Marie, one of the RheinFlanke coaches. “If you want to focus on young people as an organisation, you really have to put young people at the centre. 3X3 Unites does that very well. The young people are the beating heart of the organisation.”

And when asked what Julian Egeland, the other RheinFlanke coach, takes away from the visit, he says: “I think our youth realized and learned that there is no clear definition of what makes a role model and all of them are role models themselves in a certain way. It is more about unlocking your talents, integrity and authenticity. Plus, it was very inspirational to see how 3X3 Unites creates those strong participatory spaces for young people to express themselves in various ways.”

Lotte and Niccolò, who were responsible for organising the inspiration visit, also look back with a good feeling. “It was very educational and I gained a lot of new experiences. Especially because it was an international project, where you meet young people from different cultures. We worked well as a team, and I am proud of that.”

Lotte adds: “I hope we were able to give the young people something to take away about 3X3 Unites, what it means to be a role model, and how they can express that themselves.” She also found it very educational to stand in front of a group. “I learned how to keep the group dynamic strong and how to keep everyone involved. If a group lost focus, I would ask them a question to bring them back in. In practice, that’s where you learn the most.”