Starting in the United States

It was a hot August day in 2012 when the Lincou’s moved from Marseille to Needham, Massachusetts. They moved after Jade's third grade year; however because of the language barrier, the family felt it would be beneficial for her to repeat the grade in Needham. They moved because of Jade’s dad, Thierry’s new job opportunity. Thierry Lincou is a retired professional squash player. He competed all around the world and was World Champion in Squash in January, 2004. Thierry stayed in the high level for over ten years until eventually retiring in 2012. After retiring, Thierry decided that his next step would be to coach. He was offered many job opportunities around the globe. There were offers from Hong Kong, Canada, and many other countries around the world. One of his options was a family in Needham, Massachusetts, who wanted to hire a private coach for their daughter. He coached her for two years until he started his current job as the head squash coach at MIT.

During the first few months living in Massachusetts, everything was new. “It was like a whole new world,” said Jade. Because of the language barrier, it was very difficult for Jade to fit in at first. Nobody in her family knew English very well, except for Thierry who learned the language through travelling for work. Jade and Paola were excited for life in the United States, although Jade felt more isolated than her sister. The family felt extremely fortunate that the people in Needham were so welcoming and very helpful. This greatly helped them with adjusting to their new life.