Katharine Holmes (Washington, D.C.), a 2010 Youth Olympian, blogs about her experiences at the 2011 Junior Worlds in Jordan...
My first day in Amman, Jordan was wrung in by the melodious call to prayer echoing from the several mosques surrounding our hotel.
The first event, cadet women’s saber, started at nine, followed by cadet men’s epee starting at 10 so I grabbed a quick breakfast and hopped on the bus to head to the venue which is located on the Dead Sea.
The drive to the Dead Sea was spectacular. The arid, rocky landscape of bleached sandstone rippled in shallow mountains and valleys peppered with green patches where strawberries and other various agricultural products were grown. As we rounded a curve the Dead Sea came into view, a vast body of crystal blue water shielding its far Israeli bank with a hazy veil of mist. The Dead Sea is the lowest place on earth and, as we descended to the venue, the pressure change caused my ears to pop.
When we pulled up in front of the venue, I was taken aback. It was like setting foot in a five-star hotel. Most strips were set on marble floors or padded carpet in various, scattered rooms but several were outside in a tent surrounded by air condition units blowing cool air into the warm, balmy tent. I wandered around for several hours first watching our women’s saberists and then our men’s epeeists fencers fight there way through their pools and DEs.
It is always especially exciting to watch fencing at World Championships because there is always so much action. It is a mutli-weapon, multi-gender event with athletes from all over the world and the energy is almost tangible, bubbling up from the multitude of languages and customs circulating through the venue. After watching the fencing, I headed back to the hotel where a team dinner and team meeting capped off the day.
Tomorrow I will head over yet again to cheer on the cadet women’s epeeists and the cadet men’s foilists!
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