Skip to main content

Popular posts from this blog

Opening Ceremonies

Amazing. Fantastic. Exhilarating. Beautiful. Nothing I can write will do justice to what was the 2008 Opening Ceremonies. The Chinese have put on an incredible and extraordinary show; one that captivates the mind and enlivens the senses - its magnificence touches the very core of the human heart. Our opening ceremonies experience started early in the day @ 5:15 - and like most days here in Beijing, it was incredibly hot and humid. Dressed in our Gatsby-esque Polo outfits, the perspiration started immediately as we walked out of our building. Our first stop en route to the Birds Nest was at the Fencing Center where we mingled with other athletes and awaited the arrival of President Bush. It was amazing to be in a room filled with so many talented athletes. President Bush arrived with an entourage of people including his father President George H.W. Bush, his wife, First Lady Laura Bush, the Secretary of the Treasury, and many others...After making some remarks, the President min...
18 comments
Read more

Out and About in the Village. . .

Good Evening, or should I say Good Morning. Regardless of the time of day, the news I have to share is exciting. First let me preface you with the fact that the village is thriving as new batches of athletes arrive daily. The chaos in the dining hall is a key indicator of the increase in athlete volume. In order to understand the capacity of the dining hall let me draw you a mental picture . . . combine 6 football fields (3 deep and 2 wide), then line the space with thousands upon thousands of tables, put in buffet style food stands and add one McDonalds café, and there you have the village dining hall. Needless to say, the dining hall is the prime location for socializing, culturizing, and simply people watching. Today, there was extra excitement at meal time as some big time athletes arrived - ehhh, maybe you have heard of Michael Phelps, or perhaps Roger Federer or how about Spanish tennis phenom, Rafael Nadal. Yes indeed, we saw all of them. What is so amazing to me is the...
11 comments
Read more

Game versus Germany

We had an extremely disappointing loss to the Germans today 4-2. In an incredibly even-matched game, Germany got the edge on us by executing their attack penalty corners. With the win, Germany keeps its strong hold atop our pool, while we remain with two points and have to await the outcome of tonight's matches to see where we sit. Although the defeat is difficult to swallow (I really despise losing), I am very proud of our team for putting forth what I consider to be our best all around game of the tournament. Our forwards and midfields were incredibly tenacious on the press and put the German backfield under considerable pressure. While our backfield and goal keeper maintained a solid defensive structure and minimized their chances. Unfortunately, we lost. But obviously, we cannot go back and rewrite the outcome of the game - from here we must move forward, taking with us the lessons of the first three matches. Our focus must switch to our next match, New Zealand. Our next t...
11 comments
Read more