More than a decade ago Steve DeVoss, an American living in Hong Kong, recognized that he was not alone in his enjoyment of building friendships across cultures through his passion for sports. A baseball pitcher who never quite made it to the big leagues, Steve found it easy to develop rapport with fellow sportsmen who shared his competitive zeal. The barriers of cultural and language that normally loomed so large had somehow become much less significant.

Perhaps it was his love of challenge that prompted DeVoss to first incorporate Global Sports Partners in Hong Kong with a vision of opening wide China’s doors to visitors from the West. Organizing friendly games and sports clinics, he wanted both the local participants and the foreign visitors to come out as winners. GSP would derive revenue from project fees and corporate sponsorship. It would be a win-win-win experience.

From those humble beginnings, Global Sports Partners now calls Cyprus home with offices literally circling the globe. The ethos remains constant: designing projects for ordinary people that blend opportunity for cultural exchange with an adventure in sport that benefit all involved.

In keeping with its flexible and situation-driven ethos, Global Sports Partners’ profile in each region is unique. The Southeast Asia office was opened in Kuala Lumpur in 1998 with an eye to “sports tourism and sports development.” While GSP consults on a regional basis, a significant number of the projects have taken place in Malaysia. Basketball, softball, tennis, table tennis, soccer, volleyball and recreational activities such as jungle trekking, climbing, scuba diving and scooter touring have been just some of the contexts for GSP projects. Local partners have included government ministries, sports associations, schools and universities, communities and the Olympic Council of Malaysia.

Global Sports Partners was a key partner in the establishment of the Subang Jaya Community Youth Football League www.sjcyfl.com, the first community-based volunteer-driven youth football league in Malaysia. This pilot project launched in 2000 was designed to become a model for communities nationwide with the hope of exponentially multiplying the number of youth in organized football. Ten years later, the league is stronger than ever and community-based youth football in Malaysia is on the move.

While GSP continues to be partner in the development of a wide variety of sports, in recent years, ULTIMATE FRISBEE has become an increasing focal point of GSP projects. It is hard to imagine the growth of the sport in Malaysia had not GSP pioneered the manufacture of Malaysia’s own Ultimate Disc, MyDiscTM. While the level of Ultimate expertise has exponentially increased over the years, GSP continues to push the outer limits of the sport’s growth beyond the Klang Valley.

Global Sports Partners still relies on grants and other funding by those who believe in what we do. Perhaps there was never greater need for mutual understanding and respect across cultural divides than there is today. GSP is looking for local corporate partners who recognize the value of projects such as these and are willing to support them. Whether they realize it or not, companies associated with the West may already be benefiting from GSP programs. We believe that there may be no better publicity for the West than western visitors who rather than giving credence to the negative stereotype, instead prove to be friendly, humble, caring and respectful of the local perspective and culture.

We at Global Sports Partners believe in what we do and find great satisfaction in doing it. If you would like to find out more about our projects and activities (or would like to participate!), we would love to get in touch. There may just be a world out there you never knew existed…

Please contact Doug Ladner (gspartners@pobox.com / +6016.650.6413), GSP Director of Development for more information about how you can partner with us…

Experience the Culture. Discover the People…In the World of Sports and Beyond!