Tbh, I don't really like bullying stories because it is very hard to solve any bullying issue for short stories and it is overused so markers might get bored. Why not just focus on the man's passion with the sport and emphasis what sport and the new country has done to him. If the question was about negative belonging, just twist it like how sport has trapped him to an extent he can't connect outside his sporting life or something. But idk that's something you can think about when adapting the question :=P