Katherine & Maggie: Day 4

Katherine

Well, the American Football events are officially over, unfortunately. Throughout the week, we shall quite the skills and talents from four teams that competed for the gold: France, Germany, Poland, and the U.S.A. France ended up receiving the gold metal tonight in an evenly matched game. It was exciting because it was a cold, rainy night and a close game the entire game.  During this rainy night I had the responsibility, as well as 3 others, to fill the water bottles on the field for the players as the game went on. Also, within the week I worked the information table. There I would answer any questions that came my way. Fortunately, I had maps and a helpful Polish speaker to assist with some of the questions.

Every single day I tried to learn a new phrase or word in Polish because I wanted to try my best to speak the simple things. So, every day that I have been in the city

Zut alors! The French, American Football Team

of Wroclaw, Poland I have learned something brand new. And through this experience it has inspired me to learn a language. Every Polish person I meet I ask them how many languages they speak and almost always it is two or three. They made me want to expand my knowledge on languages. This is not all Wroclaw gave me, however. Wroclaw gave me a wide variety of experiences within their culture.

Not only does volunteering at the World Games give me an insight into the Polish culture, but exploring the city does as well. Some of the explorations that some of the other students and I have done included visiting Centennial Hall (where gymnastics, boules, billiards, etc. was) for a wonderful light show. There were a multitude of people that gathered around the circle to view this

Before the archers arrive

amazing sight. As well, we were able to see other sports within the day when we were not volunteering. Some of the sports that I witnessed included fist ball (a form of volleyball), boules (a form of bocce), and flying disc. I had never seen fist ball before and it was such an experience. The match was played between Germany and Brazil. I talked to some of the Swiss players, who were watching the match as well, and they showed me the ball. The ball was light and not as hard as I thought it would be. They also showed me how you are supposed to hit the ball. You cannot use an open hand. It is an intense game played on a longer court that a volleyball court and on grass. Overall, so very glad that I could be a spectator.

There are so many sports the World Games hosts: 31 to be exact. A sport that requires precision and perfect focus is Archery. This sport has three disciplines: Field-Barebow, Field-Recurve, and Target-Compound Team. Barebow has nothing at all to help you aim whatsoever. With recurve, you can attach certain accessories to help you aim better. As for compound, it uses a levering system of pulleys. Those disciplines make up what is needed for competition. Not only are there different sizes of targets in this competition, but also different distances. So, as an athlete, you must be able to concentrate to defeat your opponents. As for some of the standings, U.S.A. has won in Men’s Recurve and Germany has won in Women’s Recurve.

Ending the day with the Fountain-Light Show at historic Centennial Hall

Maggie

Hello from Poland! Today was our fourth and final day volunteering at American Football at the Olympic Stadium in Wroclaw. After today we will take the next few days off for our excursions, and then return to Olympic Stadium again to volunteer for Speedway. It has been a great four days working for American Football. We have had the opportunity to work with a lot of other volunteers, mostly Polish natives, who have a lot to teach us about Poland and the beautiful city of Wroclaw. I have been working for “information & logistics” for American Football, however I have spent the two game days actually working on the field of play, helping get water to the football players. At information and logistics we work outside of the venue helping guests, players, and coaches with any information they need. On the field I have worked with the Polish team for both games, and the coaches have been especially friendly and welcoming towards me. One of the coaches invited me to

Working the sidelines with the Poland's Team

the locker room, and had me run out with the team before the game. It was super cool and I overall enjoyed being their “water-girl” for their games.

We have met so many people while we have been volunteering, and they each tell us something we must do while we are here in Poland. One thing we did that was highly suggested was go to the top of St. Elizabeth church. The view was incredible and worth climbing up the tiny spiral staircase for what seemed like forever. The church, originally constructed in the 14^th century, experienced damage from a large fire in 1976, where their organ was completely destroyed. The church is located right by the beautiful town square in Wroclaw and the main tower that we climbed up is 91 meters tall.

 

The View from St. Elizabeth's

One interesting sport I have seen is Boules Sport. I had never heard of the sport before so I had no clue what to expect, but I found that it is very similar to Bocce Ball which is a game my family plays when we go to the beach. It is played by tossing balls toward a target, trying to get as close as possible to the target while also knocking your opponent’s balls away from the target. It is in the “precision sport” category here at the World Games, which I find is very fitting. An Italian player, Diego Rizzi, beat the world record while here in Wroclaw by capturing 67 points, which is three more than the previous record.

Boules, Boules!