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Vital Stats
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Birthdate: March 9, 1975
Birthplace: Canouan,
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
High School:
Hamilton Central High School (Hamilton, NY)
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Adonal David Foyle was born on March 9th, 1975 in the Caribbean islands of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. He has two older sisters, Theresa and Marian, and a younger brother, Augustine. When he was little, Adonal lived on Canouan - a tiny island measuring just 3.5 miles by 1.25 miles - with his grandmother and his donkey. He only learned about basketball at the age of 15, when he moved to the larger Union Island to attend secondary school and be with his mother and the rest of his family.
On Adonal's first day of secondary school, his unusual height singled him out by his classmates, and they insisted that he join them in a game of basketball. Unfortunately no one had bothered to explain all the rules of the game to him, so when the ball came to his hands, he ran as fast as he could to put it in the basket and made a huge slam dunk. But when he looked around everyone was laughing at him because he had forgotten to dribble the ball! Despite that embarrassing first encounter with the sport, Adonal vowed to learn the game properly since basketball seemed the only sport that his extra-long body was good for.
During the summer of 1990, two professors from America were refereeing a game in Dominica, in which Adonal was playing. They recognized the potential in him and told him that if he was interested, his raw basketball talent could help him get to America and earn a good education. Adonal had always felt that education was important, and realizing that this was the opportunity of a lifetime, he made the difficult decision to leave his family and move to New York.
After a brief stint at Cardinal O'Hara high school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Adonal went to live in Hamilton, New York with the two professors, Jay and Joan Mandle, whom he grew to love as his own family. He attended Hamilton Central High School where he led the basketball team to their first two state championships. There he received such honors as McDonald's High School All-America, third team USA Today All-America and third team Parade All-America.
More About St. Vincent and The Grenadines
St. Vincent & The Grenadines, "Jewels of the Caribbean" >
Lonely Planet: Saint Vincent & the Grenadines >
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