The last day of Gopher Italia started this morning by parting ways with several members of our "Big Family" as they were staying on for an extended tour. I trust those members of the crew will enjoy their respective jaunts through Europe. As a side note, we registered our first official celebrity sighting, in the Newark airport of all places. Archie and Eli Manning along with their wives, waited patiently for a plane to Indianapolis two rows away from us, while we were waiting to board our plane to Minneapolis.
This trip has certainly been an adventure in many senses from language to cultural to academic to sporting endeavors. From an academic perspective, this group is enrolled in various sub-disciplines of Kinesiology including: Physical Therapy, Sport Management, Sport Sociology as well as in programs outside the KIN department such as Finance. This amalgamation of viewpoints generated interesting presentations and group discussions that followed. The diverse perspectives were evident during the hockey/basketball globalization wrap up that touched on NHL/NBA expansion into Europe. While many of us agreed that the leagues have a strong fan base in Europe, the group was not necessarily sure that NHL/NBA expansion franchises in Europe are a viable option at the present time. In contrast, the dialogue surrounding Brandon Jennings leap from HS to Euro League basketball contained more divergent opinions on the importance of education, the role of sport as upward mobility and the impact this precedent might set for future student athletes with dreams of professional stardom. This example illustrates some of the formal discussions that took place during the course of our two week trip. We also ended up engaging in many informal conversations on sport, culture and globalization while walking the streets or over dinner.
In terms of sport, the Swiss women's soccer match turned into one of the most intriguing parts of our voyage. As Lindsey's blog indicates, the match was intense and more exciting than anyone could have anticipated. The way in which the majority of our group embraced the game and players was quite awesome. Here we were in the middle of Switzerland, watching a random club match of two teams that we had no connection with, yet people were cheering, jumping up and down and out on the field after the match to congratulate the winning team. The genuine enthusiasm people showed during/following that match was brilliant!
As the trip wore on our Spitalian steadily improved but we were thrown a curveball when we arrived in Switzerland to find that French and German are spoken more frequently than Italian. Fortunately, "pizza" is a universal word. Some of us, maybe just me rediscovered French phrases learned in HS. The ever important phrase, "No parlez-vous francais" came in handy a couple of times when people tried to ask me directions. Overall, this aspect of the trip reinforced the idea that I need to learn a foreign language, beyond some phrases that I miraculously remembered despite being a long time removed from 10th grade french class.
The previous paragraphs are designed to give a glimpse of the major themes we touched upon during the entire semester. Finally, I want recognize Dr. Buysse's efforts and thank her for organizing this class. Our trip flowed quite smoothly. I would like to leave you with lyrics from our trip song Empire of the Sun: Walking on a Dream, "We are always running for the thrill of it thrill of it, Always pushing up the hill searching for the thrill of it, On and on and on we are calling out and out again, Never looking down I’m just in awe of what’s in front of me..."
Emily Houghton
PhD student in Sport Sociology
sabato 6 giugno 2009
giovedì 4 giugno 2009
June 4th, last full day in Europe.
We are almost done with our fabulous journey, America,
Our day started around 9:30am when our class went to find a place for Alli and me to give our presentation. Bender and Lovrien saw big fish through the crystal clear water of Lake Geneva. Alli and I gave our presentation on Sport Nutrition. We really appreciated everyone`s attention and great comments during our discussion. After the presentation we took a ten minute break and then Bria gave her presentation on Dance and cultural identity. This presentation was very interesting because we learned about the different styles of dance and what identities were connected with them. The best part of the presentation was when Bria taught the group a Rennaissance Dance. We learned 15, 8-counts of the dance and performed for the locals on their lunch breaks. It was very fun for the whole group to get involved with the presentation.
After the presentations we had a free day until our farewell dinner at Pizza Alfredo. Before dinner most of the group went shopping in the unique stores around Lake Geneva. We spent dinner talking about the cultural differences between Europe and the United States. We each shared one main take home point from the trip that related to Sport Management. It was interesting to hear how much each person has learned through this two week study abroad class. It has been brief, but we have all experienced so much. Most of the group will depart for Minnesota tomorrow morning, but Alli and I are looking forward to our 5 day exploration of Paris, France.
This has been a fantastic and memorable trip. Thanks for following our progress over the past couple of weeks.
Ciao Tutti!
Jamie Bullock,
Kinesiology major, pre-Physicians Assistant emphasis.
Our day started around 9:30am when our class went to find a place for Alli and me to give our presentation. Bender and Lovrien saw big fish through the crystal clear water of Lake Geneva. Alli and I gave our presentation on Sport Nutrition. We really appreciated everyone`s attention and great comments during our discussion. After the presentation we took a ten minute break and then Bria gave her presentation on Dance and cultural identity. This presentation was very interesting because we learned about the different styles of dance and what identities were connected with them. The best part of the presentation was when Bria taught the group a Rennaissance Dance. We learned 15, 8-counts of the dance and performed for the locals on their lunch breaks. It was very fun for the whole group to get involved with the presentation.
After the presentations we had a free day until our farewell dinner at Pizza Alfredo. Before dinner most of the group went shopping in the unique stores around Lake Geneva. We spent dinner talking about the cultural differences between Europe and the United States. We each shared one main take home point from the trip that related to Sport Management. It was interesting to hear how much each person has learned through this two week study abroad class. It has been brief, but we have all experienced so much. Most of the group will depart for Minnesota tomorrow morning, but Alli and I are looking forward to our 5 day exploration of Paris, France.
This has been a fantastic and memorable trip. Thanks for following our progress over the past couple of weeks.
Ciao Tutti!
Jamie Bullock,
Kinesiology major, pre-Physicians Assistant emphasis.
martedì 2 giugno 2009
Lausanne!
Ciao,
Today was not filled with information, history, or site visits; however, full of picturesque views as we drove through and scaled the Alps. We snapped many photographs of the beautiful mountain slopes and quaint villages. The bus ride was only supposed to take 3 hours, but since we had to scale the mountain side several times, stop at the border, and stop for lunch, the trip ended up taking 5 hours! Thankfully, we were able to pass the time with napping and gazing out the window. Once we finally arrived in Lausanne, it took us some time to find our way to the hotel, as it was our bus driver's first time in the city as well. Lausanne is a beautiful city built on the mountain side starting at the shore of Lake Geneva. We walked down to the base of the mountain to finish two group projects and discussions. Thankfully, the lake was at the group's back so they weren't overly distracted with scenery. We had a gorgeous view of the lake and a mountain back drop, which happened to be the country of France. So we can basically say we were in France as well. Even though we did not do anything as a group for sport we did see a number of soccer games going in the small villages. Also, we saw a rowing team practicing out on Lake Geneva. The amazing part was that even though we were passing through small villages the soccer fields were still lined with with advertisements!That was just an interesting observation. Hope all is well back in the states. We will be back in three short days and we would all appreciate a hearty American meal when we return :)!
Ciao Tutti,
Tony Lucia, CSOM Finance major
Today was not filled with information, history, or site visits; however, full of picturesque views as we drove through and scaled the Alps. We snapped many photographs of the beautiful mountain slopes and quaint villages. The bus ride was only supposed to take 3 hours, but since we had to scale the mountain side several times, stop at the border, and stop for lunch, the trip ended up taking 5 hours! Thankfully, we were able to pass the time with napping and gazing out the window. Once we finally arrived in Lausanne, it took us some time to find our way to the hotel, as it was our bus driver's first time in the city as well. Lausanne is a beautiful city built on the mountain side starting at the shore of Lake Geneva. We walked down to the base of the mountain to finish two group projects and discussions. Thankfully, the lake was at the group's back so they weren't overly distracted with scenery. We had a gorgeous view of the lake and a mountain back drop, which happened to be the country of France. So we can basically say we were in France as well. Even though we did not do anything as a group for sport we did see a number of soccer games going in the small villages. Also, we saw a rowing team practicing out on Lake Geneva. The amazing part was that even though we were passing through small villages the soccer fields were still lined with with advertisements!That was just an interesting observation. Hope all is well back in the states. We will be back in three short days and we would all appreciate a hearty American meal when we return :)!
Ciao Tutti,
Tony Lucia, CSOM Finance major
lunedì 1 giugno 2009
Day 11 - Milano
Today we meet up at 9am and took the metro over to San Siro Soccer Stadium, the home stadium to AC Milan and Inter Milan. We got a tour of the stadium, which included both locker rooms and the VIP area. I even got to sit in David Beckham’s locker room chair! After the tour we were able to walk around the museum there. It was really cool to see all the old artifacts, jerseys, pictures, and even trophies the teams have won. After the tour, the group broke up and went their separate ways. A few people went and saw the Duomo, some grabbed lunch, and some headed back to the hotel.
We all met up at 2pm in the lobby of the hotel to hear Tony and my presentation on the globalization of hockey. We also heard from guest Brad Doshan, the directing manager ofEuro Sport Tours and also U of M hockey alumni, who now lives and coaches in Italy. He gave us great insight to the world of European hockey, especially Switzerland and Italy along with giving us a detailed overview of Euro Sport Tours. Specifically he was able to answer many of the questions we had about the structure of hockey in Europe within the professional leagues as well as the youth development of Swiss and Italian hockey players. One of the things I thought was incredibly interesting was that the youth players in Switzerland receive professional coaching starting at a young age all the way up to their professional years if they are lucky enough to make it. Also, I was shocked to hear that youth hockey programs are sponsored and privately subsidized, therefore the parents have to pay only a small amount for great quality coaches compared to the U.S. where you can pay thousands of dollars for hockey and professional coaching.
Following the presentation, a few of us headed to Corso Buoenos Aires to do some shopping in the great fashion area of Milan. Tomorrow we are finally saying goodbye to the beautiful country of Italy and heading to Lausanne, Switzerland.
-Ali Carlston, Undergraduate Kinesiology Student
We all met up at 2pm in the lobby of the hotel to hear Tony and my presentation on the globalization of hockey. We also heard from guest Brad Doshan, the directing manager ofEuro Sport Tours and also U of M hockey alumni, who now lives and coaches in Italy. He gave us great insight to the world of European hockey, especially Switzerland and Italy along with giving us a detailed overview of Euro Sport Tours. Specifically he was able to answer many of the questions we had about the structure of hockey in Europe within the professional leagues as well as the youth development of Swiss and Italian hockey players. One of the things I thought was incredibly interesting was that the youth players in Switzerland receive professional coaching starting at a young age all the way up to their professional years if they are lucky enough to make it. Also, I was shocked to hear that youth hockey programs are sponsored and privately subsidized, therefore the parents have to pay only a small amount for great quality coaches compared to the U.S. where you can pay thousands of dollars for hockey and professional coaching.
Following the presentation, a few of us headed to Corso Buoenos Aires to do some shopping in the great fashion area of Milan. Tomorrow we are finally saying goodbye to the beautiful country of Italy and heading to Lausanne, Switzerland.
-Ali Carlston, Undergraduate Kinesiology Student
domenica 31 maggio 2009
First Day in Milan
Ciao Tutti!
Today we said goodbye to Treviso and headed to the fashion capital of the world- Milan! After we checked into our hotel, a small group took off on a train for Lugano, Switzerland, to teach a basketball clinic for young girls there. They were interested in learning about the structure of youth basketball in Europe and told us that it was a very unique cultural experience. We will be hearing more about the trip in their upcoming presentation.
The rest of us explored Milan on our own today. We visited two beautiful parks and observed several different kinds of sport and play including casual games of soccer and volleyball. There were a few bikers and runners, but for the most part people were just lounging in the grass with their friends and families. We had the opportunity to visit a 15th century castle as well before we headed to McDonalds for some American comfort food! Milan was somewhat of a ghost town today, presumably because it is Sunday, so we look forward to seeing the more energetic side of the city tomorrow!
Alli Smith
Today we said goodbye to Treviso and headed to the fashion capital of the world- Milan! After we checked into our hotel, a small group took off on a train for Lugano, Switzerland, to teach a basketball clinic for young girls there. They were interested in learning about the structure of youth basketball in Europe and told us that it was a very unique cultural experience. We will be hearing more about the trip in their upcoming presentation.
The rest of us explored Milan on our own today. We visited two beautiful parks and observed several different kinds of sport and play including casual games of soccer and volleyball. There were a few bikers and runners, but for the most part people were just lounging in the grass with their friends and families. We had the opportunity to visit a 15th century castle as well before we headed to McDonalds for some American comfort food! Milan was somewhat of a ghost town today, presumably because it is Sunday, so we look forward to seeing the more energetic side of the city tomorrow!
Alli Smith
sabato 30 maggio 2009
Day 9 Treviso and more
Today was a free day for the group. Many members of our group went to Venice to see the canals and experience all that this tourist city had to offer, including smaller boutique shops as well as larger shops. We were lucky enough to find sports stores, which included Nike, Puma and others. Almost half of the group went together and a few others went by themselves to enjoy a day alone. Other members returned to La Ghirada to play basketball and other sports with locals from Treviso.
Piazza San Marco was larger than many of us expected and extremely busy. The unfortunate afterthought of visiting a major tourist city on a Saturday afternoon. I was surprised to find a Bar Americano in the piazza. We did not visit it, but it seemed like a welcome place to find a true American burger and fries. Instead we had lunch over looking the Adriatic Sea and we were still able to eat burgers for lunch. (Unfortunately, we had to stop at a Burger King on the way back to the train station to have a "real" American burger and our faith in the American standby was reaffirmed.)
After visiting the souvenir shops along the Adriatic our large group of eight split into three and five. Three of us walked back to the train station for the ride back to Treviso, and the five remaining girls found themselves a lovely gondola ride.
While looking for the time of a basketball game with the hotel host, Dr. Buysse and I were surprised and pleased to discover that our group had made one of the local newspapers, La Tribuna for our visit to La Ghirada. The short story was accompanied by a photo of our group and one of guest speakers.
The group minus myself and Dr. Buysse went back to the city center to have dinner for the evening. While I stayed near the hotel I spoke with our host at length about American rock and roll music. We also spoke of Italian music and how it is very behind the times. We exchanged several bands to look up on the Internet. Although he won out in this department, while I received seven bands to look up, he (Robert) received 20-30. I think we are both excited to discover new music.
All in all I would say the day was a success for everybody. Whether finding souvenirs for loved ones back in the States, or getting lost in the world of sports, or lost in Treviso, we all enjoyed another sunny, beautiful day in Italy.
Ciao for now! We move on to Milano bright and early tomorrow morning.
Kitrick Myers
M.Ed. Applied Kinesiology - Sport Management
Piazza San Marco was larger than many of us expected and extremely busy. The unfortunate afterthought of visiting a major tourist city on a Saturday afternoon. I was surprised to find a Bar Americano in the piazza. We did not visit it, but it seemed like a welcome place to find a true American burger and fries. Instead we had lunch over looking the Adriatic Sea and we were still able to eat burgers for lunch. (Unfortunately, we had to stop at a Burger King on the way back to the train station to have a "real" American burger and our faith in the American standby was reaffirmed.)
After visiting the souvenir shops along the Adriatic our large group of eight split into three and five. Three of us walked back to the train station for the ride back to Treviso, and the five remaining girls found themselves a lovely gondola ride.
While looking for the time of a basketball game with the hotel host, Dr. Buysse and I were surprised and pleased to discover that our group had made one of the local newspapers, La Tribuna for our visit to La Ghirada. The short story was accompanied by a photo of our group and one of guest speakers.
The group minus myself and Dr. Buysse went back to the city center to have dinner for the evening. While I stayed near the hotel I spoke with our host at length about American rock and roll music. We also spoke of Italian music and how it is very behind the times. We exchanged several bands to look up on the Internet. Although he won out in this department, while I received seven bands to look up, he (Robert) received 20-30. I think we are both excited to discover new music.
All in all I would say the day was a success for everybody. Whether finding souvenirs for loved ones back in the States, or getting lost in the world of sports, or lost in Treviso, we all enjoyed another sunny, beautiful day in Italy.
Ciao for now! We move on to Milano bright and early tomorrow morning.
Kitrick Myers
M.Ed. Applied Kinesiology - Sport Management
venerdì 29 maggio 2009
Day 8 La Ghirada
Today we visited La Ghirada Sports Complex run by the four brothers (actually three brothers and one sister) of the Benetton family. It started in 1985 as a gift to the community. La Ghirada is unique because it is owned and operated privately, but it is open to the community for public use. Anyone can use the facilities any day of the year without having to pay a membership fee. Facilities include rugby fields, a swimming pool, basketball courts, volleyball courts, a gym, and a weight room. It also offers people the ability to participate in classes like dance or karate.
The Benetton family values the ability to give back to the community. This is the main reason the facilities are open for public use. La Ghirada also hosts several tournaments for children throughout the year. One example is a 3 v. 3 basketball tournament called Join the Game. This tournament is open to children all throughout Italy that are fourteen years old or younger. Each year over 35,000 children participate in this tournament.
Throughout the course of our visit, we got the chance to listen to several different presentations, which emphasized mainly on the basketball club, soccer club, and marketing in sport. Two of the presenters were from the Univeristy of Venice. The basketball component of the presentation was especially interesting to us being that our group presentation focuses on the Italian basketball clubs. We learned about the many opportunities that are given to youth basketball participants by the different camps offered. For example, La Ghirada has a youth program for children ages 6-16 that teaches and prepares them for future success in the game. This is a college type setting, in the fact that they are provided a dormatory type lifestyle while participating in the program in addition to attending school.
The Benetton group has several professional teams: a men’s basketball team, a men’s volleyball team (the most famous in the world), a men’s rugby team, and a women’s rugby team. In 2003 all four teams won the championship for their respective sport, the first to ever accomplish this feat. This placed Treviso as the sport capital of the country. It is interesting to note that they do not have a soccer team, being that soccer is the most popular sport in Italy. This was intentional because none of the Benetton brothers played soccer, and it allowed people in the community with other sports interests to become involved in the complex.
It was extremely interesting to visit the facilities. It was also a wonderful privilege to listen to the presenters and have conversations with them about some problems in sports, i.e. the lack of attendance at live games, the increasing sedentary lifestyle of Italians, and the lack of female participation in sport. We are very greatful to La Ghirada for allowing us to do this.
Tomorrow is a free day, and many members of our group are planning on visiting Venice. We plan on taking in the sites and sounds of this wonderful city!
Lisa Schramm and Jenna Traeger
B.S. in Kinesiology, Pre-Physical Therapy
The Benetton family values the ability to give back to the community. This is the main reason the facilities are open for public use. La Ghirada also hosts several tournaments for children throughout the year. One example is a 3 v. 3 basketball tournament called Join the Game. This tournament is open to children all throughout Italy that are fourteen years old or younger. Each year over 35,000 children participate in this tournament.
Throughout the course of our visit, we got the chance to listen to several different presentations, which emphasized mainly on the basketball club, soccer club, and marketing in sport. Two of the presenters were from the Univeristy of Venice. The basketball component of the presentation was especially interesting to us being that our group presentation focuses on the Italian basketball clubs. We learned about the many opportunities that are given to youth basketball participants by the different camps offered. For example, La Ghirada has a youth program for children ages 6-16 that teaches and prepares them for future success in the game. This is a college type setting, in the fact that they are provided a dormatory type lifestyle while participating in the program in addition to attending school.
The Benetton group has several professional teams: a men’s basketball team, a men’s volleyball team (the most famous in the world), a men’s rugby team, and a women’s rugby team. In 2003 all four teams won the championship for their respective sport, the first to ever accomplish this feat. This placed Treviso as the sport capital of the country. It is interesting to note that they do not have a soccer team, being that soccer is the most popular sport in Italy. This was intentional because none of the Benetton brothers played soccer, and it allowed people in the community with other sports interests to become involved in the complex.
It was extremely interesting to visit the facilities. It was also a wonderful privilege to listen to the presenters and have conversations with them about some problems in sports, i.e. the lack of attendance at live games, the increasing sedentary lifestyle of Italians, and the lack of female participation in sport. We are very greatful to La Ghirada for allowing us to do this.
Tomorrow is a free day, and many members of our group are planning on visiting Venice. We plan on taking in the sites and sounds of this wonderful city!
Lisa Schramm and Jenna Traeger
B.S. in Kinesiology, Pre-Physical Therapy
giovedì 28 maggio 2009
Dia 7 Treviso and Pinarello
Today we had the opportunity to visit one of the finest bicycle manufactuing facilities in the world, the Pinarello plant (www.pinarello.com) in Treviso Italy. Our group was given a tour by Andrea, Chiara, and her faithful companion Duplo Pinarello. The company has a rich family history which continues to this day and is a great source of pride for those who work at the plant. Pinarello makes and distributes about 10,000 bikes a year. The majority of the bikes stay within Italy, but there is a respectable market for Pinarello in both the United States and Japan. Quailty is a conerstone of the Pinarello company. This was quite evident in our tour from the shipping, painting, designing, and building of each and every Pinarello bike. Yet, Pinarello does more than just make bicycle frames. The company also sponsors several mens and womens teams and sponsors a popular Gronfondo each summer.
In addition to the impressive and beautiful bicycles that Pinarello builds, there is another more important reason that I gained respect for the company. From the moment we arrived until the moment we left, Andrea and Chiara treated our U of M group with the highest level of respect, patientce, and dignity. It was most evident that personal connection, in addition to quality, are pillars of the Pinarello business. Although many of our group members were unfamiliar with the comany before the tour, Andrea and Chiara were most kind with their explinations and their time. It was truly an honor to be in the factory and to meet the family members who are responisble for the reputation of such an elite company. My sincere thanks go to both Andrea and to Chiara for our experience today.
Ciao!
Bud Trnka
U of M Kinesiology undergraduate student
In addition to the impressive and beautiful bicycles that Pinarello builds, there is another more important reason that I gained respect for the company. From the moment we arrived until the moment we left, Andrea and Chiara treated our U of M group with the highest level of respect, patientce, and dignity. It was most evident that personal connection, in addition to quality, are pillars of the Pinarello business. Although many of our group members were unfamiliar with the comany before the tour, Andrea and Chiara were most kind with their explinations and their time. It was truly an honor to be in the factory and to meet the family members who are responisble for the reputation of such an elite company. My sincere thanks go to both Andrea and to Chiara for our experience today.
Ciao!
Bud Trnka
U of M Kinesiology undergraduate student
mercoledì 27 maggio 2009
Day 6 Futbol
Ciao!
Today we began our day travelling by city bus to the International Futbol Center where the Italian national team trains. There we toured a museum filled with original soccer jerseys, trophies, and memorabilia of the team, soccer fields, and saw where they host the players during their stay. Fino Fini, the trainer or doctoro of the team for twenty years, was our guide and told us stories and memories of the team’s history.
Concluding our tour of the facilities Gennaro Testa, a professor of sport ethics and sociology, gave us a lecture. He introduced the Italian prospective on sports and expressed hope to spread a seed of improving sport in a positive light. The lecture was translated by Jacqueline a native New Yorker now living in Florence.
Jacqueline took us to lunch after the site visit at Ristorante Pizzeria il Gatto e la Volpe, which had very delicious foods.
Later in the evening we all headed over to a pub (Naima) to watch the UEFA EURO CUP Championship game between Barcelona and Manchester United (soccer game). It was a well fought battle and Barcelona won 2-0 over Manchester United. It was interesting to watch the reactions of the fans both on TV and in the pub. Tomorrow we will be heading off to Treviso. Farewell Florence!
Today we began our day travelling by city bus to the International Futbol Center where the Italian national team trains. There we toured a museum filled with original soccer jerseys, trophies, and memorabilia of the team, soccer fields, and saw where they host the players during their stay. Fino Fini, the trainer or doctoro of the team for twenty years, was our guide and told us stories and memories of the team’s history.
Concluding our tour of the facilities Gennaro Testa, a professor of sport ethics and sociology, gave us a lecture. He introduced the Italian prospective on sports and expressed hope to spread a seed of improving sport in a positive light. The lecture was translated by Jacqueline a native New Yorker now living in Florence.
Jacqueline took us to lunch after the site visit at Ristorante Pizzeria il Gatto e la Volpe, which had very delicious foods.
Later in the evening we all headed over to a pub (Naima) to watch the UEFA EURO CUP Championship game between Barcelona and Manchester United (soccer game). It was a well fought battle and Barcelona won 2-0 over Manchester United. It was interesting to watch the reactions of the fans both on TV and in the pub. Tomorrow we will be heading off to Treviso. Farewell Florence!
martedì 26 maggio 2009
Day 5 Firenze
Ciao Tutti!!
Another beautiful day in Italy, today we left Rome for the birthplace of the renaissance, Firenze. The trip took three hours and the bus traveled north on autostrada A1. The landscape and vistas were truly amazing, rolling hills and small mountains, tunnels cutting through the landscape, roads weaving in and out of the hills, and the fast trains traveling along side. The bus made one stop on the autostrada, "freeway" like in the states similar to the Illinois tollway there are rest stops with food, beverage, and toilets on top of the autostrada. The driver aloted for a 25 minute break in which we all enjoyed some Italian rest stop fare,**(note, not entirely different from other Italian lunch cuisine, pizza, and a variety of sandwiches, espresso, and salads which were a surprise). After inhaling an espresso the bus left and we all read the readings for today's presentation. The presentation today was done by Lindsey and Kitrick. Their research focused on comparing the cultures of baseball and soccer. Aspects of player trade, league structure and the behavior of fans were discussed. The project stimulated disscussion and topics concerning, the behavior of fans and league organization.
After the presentation the group was looking forward to touring the city and seeing the birth place of the renaissance. Bud and I will be doing our project on professional cycling, and originally there was the interest to incorporate a commuter aspect into the project. When we arrived in Rome Bud and I were disappointed to see that there were hardly any cyclists. Rome is an extremely busy city, a bicycle rider would not make it a day there without being pushed off the street by either a moped or a car. The Vespa's and cars rule ROME!!!. Florence is in the center of Italy, further north than Rome and right in the middle of the country. It was refreshing when the bus arrived in Florence and we were able to see a copious increase in cyclists, there are even bike lanes. Bud originally wanted to organize a bike tour of a city, we all wanted to see all of the important monuments and churches in Firenze. The hotel desk gave us the name of a bike shop that rented bikes by the hour, (www.florencebybike.it). 
For eight euro the 13 of us were able to see the majority of the city!! Here are the sights that we biked to and around: Giardino della Fortezza, the American Consulate, Ponte Vecchio, Piazzale Michelangelo (statue of David, AMAZING VIEW of the whole city), Capella Pazi (dinner), Galleria degli Uffizi, Palazzo Vecchio (bumped into Dr. Buysse, and listned to some nighttime opera), Piazza della Signoria, Ratto delle Sambine, Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Flore (Piazza del Duomo, and Piazza della Repubblica.
Personally I am truly impressed with Firenze, and seem to be enjoying it more than Rome even though we have been here for less than a day.
The bike tour was a steal for the price and we were able to cover more ground. Tonights dinner was amzing, everyone seemed to order a great dish. Italian nights are exquisite, not too hot not too cool and all of the monuments are lit up. Bumping in to Dr. Buysse was a plesent suprise, we saw Dr. Buysse at the outdoor opera performance. In addition the bike tour was a great intro into the professional cylcing research project that Bud and I will be doing on Thursday. The project will include a trip to a bike manufacturer, called Pinarello, and a disscussion about professional cycling. I would like to extend a shout OUT to our counterparts in Rome, Austin and Emily. We miss you and hope that the conference goes well, call anytime. Tomorrow we are heading to the International Football Center COVERCIANO ( the location where the World Cup Team trains).
Ciao
Bene Elias
Sport Management
Another beautiful day in Italy, today we left Rome for the birthplace of the renaissance, Firenze. The trip took three hours and the bus traveled north on autostrada A1. The landscape and vistas were truly amazing, rolling hills and small mountains, tunnels cutting through the landscape, roads weaving in and out of the hills, and the fast trains traveling along side. The bus made one stop on the autostrada, "freeway" like in the states similar to the Illinois tollway there are rest stops with food, beverage, and toilets on top of the autostrada. The driver aloted for a 25 minute break in which we all enjoyed some Italian rest stop fare,**(note, not entirely different from other Italian lunch cuisine, pizza, and a variety of sandwiches, espresso, and salads which were a surprise). After inhaling an espresso the bus left and we all read the readings for today's presentation. The presentation today was done by Lindsey and Kitrick. Their research focused on comparing the cultures of baseball and soccer. Aspects of player trade, league structure and the behavior of fans were discussed. The project stimulated disscussion and topics concerning, the behavior of fans and league organization.
After the presentation the group was looking forward to touring the city and seeing the birth place of the renaissance. Bud and I will be doing our project on professional cycling, and originally there was the interest to incorporate a commuter aspect into the project. When we arrived in Rome Bud and I were disappointed to see that there were hardly any cyclists. Rome is an extremely busy city, a bicycle rider would not make it a day there without being pushed off the street by either a moped or a car. The Vespa's and cars rule ROME!!!. Florence is in the center of Italy, further north than Rome and right in the middle of the country. It was refreshing when the bus arrived in Florence and we were able to see a copious increase in cyclists, there are even bike lanes. Bud originally wanted to organize a bike tour of a city, we all wanted to see all of the important monuments and churches in Firenze. The hotel desk gave us the name of a bike shop that rented bikes by the hour, (www.florencebybike.it). 
For eight euro the 13 of us were able to see the majority of the city!! Here are the sights that we biked to and around: Giardino della Fortezza, the American Consulate, Ponte Vecchio, Piazzale Michelangelo (statue of David, AMAZING VIEW of the whole city), Capella Pazi (dinner), Galleria degli Uffizi, Palazzo Vecchio (bumped into Dr. Buysse, and listned to some nighttime opera), Piazza della Signoria, Ratto delle Sambine, Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Flore (Piazza del Duomo, and Piazza della Repubblica.Personally I am truly impressed with Firenze, and seem to be enjoying it more than Rome even though we have been here for less than a day.
The bike tour was a steal for the price and we were able to cover more ground. Tonights dinner was amzing, everyone seemed to order a great dish. Italian nights are exquisite, not too hot not too cool and all of the monuments are lit up. Bumping in to Dr. Buysse was a plesent suprise, we saw Dr. Buysse at the outdoor opera performance. In addition the bike tour was a great intro into the professional cylcing research project that Bud and I will be doing on Thursday. The project will include a trip to a bike manufacturer, called Pinarello, and a disscussion about professional cycling. I would like to extend a shout OUT to our counterparts in Rome, Austin and Emily. We miss you and hope that the conference goes well, call anytime. Tomorrow we are heading to the International Football Center COVERCIANO ( the location where the World Cup Team trains).
Ciao
Bene Elias
Sport Management
Day 4 - Rome
Today was out last full day in Rome, so naturally I wanted to make the most out of it. While many opted to sleep in, my day started at 6:15 a.m. with a light jog to the park. This was my first visit the the park so I was interested to observe activity of the locals as I worked out. At the park, I witnessed for the first time people intentionally engaging in physical activity. Numerous people were out jogging. Ages of the joggers ranged from college age to senior citizens. Most ran alone, but there were a few who ran with their dogs or friends. As an aspiring P.E. teacher, I was thrilled to see that the Romans do in fact exercise.
When I made it back I ate the usual breakfast offered by Hotel Medici, which mostly consists of ham and cheese sandwiches as the main course. As I have eavesdropped in the conversations during breakfast I have noticed that the vast majority of the guests at our hotel speak English. I have met people from Michigan, Maryland, New York, Georgia, Ireland, and I have overheard some thick British accents. I feel like I am staying at a small English speaking haven within Rome.
After breakfast the first presentation was given on how social media, specifically Twitter, affects sport. This was a very interesting presentation on the way Twitter may revolutionize certain aspects of sport. In March 2009 44% of the major professional teams had Twitter, but by May of 2009 77% of the teams had Twitter. On a fun note, Shaquille O'Neil used to be one of the greatest basketball players in the world – now he is one of the world's greatest Twitterer (or Tweeter?) and has over a million followers. Twitter is an exciting up and coming form of social media that can be used for marketing and maybe even as a catalyst to reconstruct gender identities as it pertains to sport.
Unfortunately, a site visit was cancelled so we had to go to the beach (I know – it was horrible!). The beach was outside the city of Roma so we go to leave the city. On the bus ride, I noticed my first signs of sport as I saw my first basketball courts, weight room and soccer field since I had been in Italy.
When we finally arrived at the beach, the group had a great day on the Mediterranean Sea. Some examples of sport at the beach was volleyball, paddle ball and soccer. The highlight of my time there was when a quite older gentleman approached me and started playing football (soccer) with me. He could juggle a soccer ball all day with his feet. He could do every trick in the book and then some. At one point he laid down in mid-juggle to take a pretend nap – never letting the ball hit the ground! Needless to say, my skills were not up to par with his, however, he did say to me that 'You are a very big professional.' Even though he was probably just being nice, it made me feel good nonetheless. He also introduced the group to a variation of paddle ball, played with old wooden rackets and a tennis ball. We never learned the 'official rules', but it was still a lot of fun.
After the beach, the day ended with our second session of Italian lessons. The group was fairly tired, but worked hard to focus throughout the time. No one in the group will claim to be fluent in Italian, but baby steps are being made!
All in all, the day can be counted as a success – I'm not sure anyone is 100% ready to leave Rome; however, we are excited to see what adventures our next stop in Florence brings.
Ciao!
David Lovrien
Undergraduate student in Kinesiology
When I made it back I ate the usual breakfast offered by Hotel Medici, which mostly consists of ham and cheese sandwiches as the main course. As I have eavesdropped in the conversations during breakfast I have noticed that the vast majority of the guests at our hotel speak English. I have met people from Michigan, Maryland, New York, Georgia, Ireland, and I have overheard some thick British accents. I feel like I am staying at a small English speaking haven within Rome.
After breakfast the first presentation was given on how social media, specifically Twitter, affects sport. This was a very interesting presentation on the way Twitter may revolutionize certain aspects of sport. In March 2009 44% of the major professional teams had Twitter, but by May of 2009 77% of the teams had Twitter. On a fun note, Shaquille O'Neil used to be one of the greatest basketball players in the world – now he is one of the world's greatest Twitterer (or Tweeter?) and has over a million followers. Twitter is an exciting up and coming form of social media that can be used for marketing and maybe even as a catalyst to reconstruct gender identities as it pertains to sport.
Unfortunately, a site visit was cancelled so we had to go to the beach (I know – it was horrible!). The beach was outside the city of Roma so we go to leave the city. On the bus ride, I noticed my first signs of sport as I saw my first basketball courts, weight room and soccer field since I had been in Italy.When we finally arrived at the beach, the group had a great day on the Mediterranean Sea. Some examples of sport at the beach was volleyball, paddle ball and soccer. The highlight of my time there was when a quite older gentleman approached me and started playing football (soccer) with me. He could juggle a soccer ball all day with his feet. He could do every trick in the book and then some. At one point he laid down in mid-juggle to take a pretend nap – never letting the ball hit the ground! Needless to say, my skills were not up to par with his, however, he did say to me that 'You are a very big professional.' Even though he was probably just being nice, it made me feel good nonetheless. He also introduced the group to a variation of paddle ball, played with old wooden rackets and a tennis ball. We never learned the 'official rules', but it was still a lot of fun.
After the beach, the day ended with our second session of Italian lessons. The group was fairly tired, but worked hard to focus throughout the time. No one in the group will claim to be fluent in Italian, but baby steps are being made!
All in all, the day can be counted as a success – I'm not sure anyone is 100% ready to leave Rome; however, we are excited to see what adventures our next stop in Florence brings.
Ciao!
David Lovrien
Undergraduate student in Kinesiology
lunedì 25 maggio 2009
A note from our professora
Ciao Tutti!
I am sorry that I haven't posted sooner but, it's been a bit busy as the group faculty leader and, I think the students have been doing a great job of keeping you posted on our activities. Following just three days of activities and site visits we have many things to inform our discussions about the social processes of globalization and connections to sport.
The students are in their second Italian class following a great presentation by Emily and Austin this morning entitled: Examining Elite Sport Representation in Social Media: Conceptualizing Twitter. They will present their research at the European Sport Sociology Conference in Rome in two days. We are going to Florence without them but proud that they will represent the University of Minnesota at such a wonderful academic conference. They will join us in Treviso. Kudos also to Austin for all of her work in setting up our social networking with you.
Almost the end of class so I must say Ciao for now.
Buona Giornata!
Jo Ann Buysse, Ph.D
I am sorry that I haven't posted sooner but, it's been a bit busy as the group faculty leader and, I think the students have been doing a great job of keeping you posted on our activities. Following just three days of activities and site visits we have many things to inform our discussions about the social processes of globalization and connections to sport.
The students are in their second Italian class following a great presentation by Emily and Austin this morning entitled: Examining Elite Sport Representation in Social Media: Conceptualizing Twitter. They will present their research at the European Sport Sociology Conference in Rome in two days. We are going to Florence without them but proud that they will represent the University of Minnesota at such a wonderful academic conference. They will join us in Treviso. Kudos also to Austin for all of her work in setting up our social networking with you.
Almost the end of class so I must say Ciao for now.
Buona Giornata!
Jo Ann Buysse, Ph.D
domenica 24 maggio 2009
Day 3 - Rome
We are finally all recovered from jet lag!! Today started with a late breakfast which in my case consisted of some bread with hazelnut chocolate spread called nutella on it with some yogurt, orange juice and some fruit cocktail. I tried the carbonated water (aqua con gas) today but was not a fan what so ever.
After breakfast some students met to go to St. Peters Basilica in anticipation to hear a church blessing from the Pope. However, luck was not in their favor and instead they viewed a service from the large screens in the plaza. It was not totally packed, but many still enjoyed the experience.
Others, like myself, chose to get a work out in and go on a stroll through villa Borghese. It was not like any typical park in the US with playground equipment and basketball courts. Instead it was full of sculptures fountains and little stores selling beverages and snacks. The park also included a few amusement rides and video games. The park was full of families bicycling and walking though the park, many of which brought their dogs. Some dogs were not on their leashes and the park also had a large area for dogs, had a zoo on the outside of the park and had the main attraction, Galleria Borghese.
The afternoon was filled with soccer excitement. We visited a promo for the upcoming Euro Cup Final. We witnessed mini soccer matches played by the youth. I watched a match of boys from Italy play small sided 5 on 5 soccer. They were no older than 10 but their skills were well beyond their age of the soccer players in the US. Not only did they play like the professionals: faking injuries, flopping for calls, wasting time and having dramatic finishes with kisses to the crowd and hugging their coach. There were easily 100 fans watching the game, chanting cheers and the emotions of the crowd added to the dramatic finish in Penalty kicks where the winning team praised the crowd in triumph and the losing boys cried and pouted in disbelief in their parent's arms, throwing their shirts and kicking the sponsorship ads behind the goal.
Speaking of sponsors, we moved onto the European Beach Soccer championships where there were numerous sponsors at the event, on billboards, flags around the stadium and ad panels surrounding the game. The beach soccer was a site to see. We witnessed youth; women and men play the game. The men's final was a dramatic one where the Spanish defeated the Swiss in the championship game. The game was played barefoot with no shin guards 5 on 5 with a keeper. The game was fairly fast pace with possession being played mostly in the air off of juggling skills and the keepers throwing the ball the length of the field. Through it all both the men and women were very gifted with the ball and we saw a wide range of goals scored off of headers, corners, free kicks and volleys. We even witnessed a few bicycle kicks.
Between the matches some of the students visited the Roman Forum, where Caesar was buried. The grave still has flowers on it and it was once the center of ancient Rome.
Tomorrow we look forward to another hot day involving a journey to the beach and our second Italian lesson.
-Bryan Bender
Master's of Education in Applied Kinesiology
Sport Management
After breakfast some students met to go to St. Peters Basilica in anticipation to hear a church blessing from the Pope. However, luck was not in their favor and instead they viewed a service from the large screens in the plaza. It was not totally packed, but many still enjoyed the experience.Others, like myself, chose to get a work out in and go on a stroll through villa Borghese. It was not like any typical park in the US with playground equipment and basketball courts. Instead it was full of sculptures fountains and little stores selling beverages and snacks. The park also included a few amusement rides and video games. The park was full of families bicycling and walking though the park, many of which brought their dogs. Some dogs were not on their leashes and the park also had a large area for dogs, had a zoo on the outside of the park and had the main attraction, Galleria Borghese.
The afternoon was filled with soccer excitement. We visited a promo for the upcoming Euro Cup Final. We witnessed mini soccer matches played by the youth. I watched a match of boys from Italy play small sided 5 on 5 soccer. They were no older than 10 but their skills were well beyond their age of the soccer players in the US. Not only did they play like the professionals: faking injuries, flopping for calls, wasting time and having dramatic finishes with kisses to the crowd and hugging their coach. There were easily 100 fans watching the game, chanting cheers and the emotions of the crowd added to the dramatic finish in Penalty kicks where the winning team praised the crowd in triumph and the losing boys cried and pouted in disbelief in their parent's arms, throwing their shirts and kicking the sponsorship ads behind the goal.
Speaking of sponsors, we moved onto the European Beach Soccer championships where there were numerous sponsors at the event, on billboards, flags around the stadium and ad panels surrounding the game. The beach soccer was a site to see. We witnessed youth; women and men play the game. The men's final was a dramatic one where the Spanish defeated the Swiss in the championship game. The game was played barefoot with no shin guards 5 on 5 with a keeper. The game was fairly fast pace with possession being played mostly in the air off of juggling skills and the keepers throwing the ball the length of the field. Through it all both the men and women were very gifted with the ball and we saw a wide range of goals scored off of headers, corners, free kicks and volleys. We even witnessed a few bicycle kicks.Between the matches some of the students visited the Roman Forum, where Caesar was buried. The grave still has flowers on it and it was once the center of ancient Rome.
Tomorrow we look forward to another hot day involving a journey to the beach and our second Italian lesson.
-Bryan Bender
Master's of Education in Applied Kinesiology
Sport Management
sabato 23 maggio 2009
Day 2 - Rome
Today was an excellent day for our group. We went to the Vatican and St. Peter’s Basilica, as well as the Colosseum. At the end of the day we have an Italian language lesson.
On the way to the Vatican we went outside the original gates of Rome. They are centuries old, however, I forgot how they are. At the Vatican there were amazing sculptures, paintings, and tapestries. It was interesting to find out that the sculptures were originally painted. We passed one sculpture that had eyes painted on it, but most of the sculptures we saw were simply stone colored.
On the visit to St. Peter’s we were able to see the end of a church service. We originally did not know the service was going on, we heard organ music playing and began to wonder. As the service ended the guards blocked the crowd so they could walk past us to their quarters.
At the Colosseum we were able to see where the trap doors for the animals to come out, as in the movie Gladiator. A stage was being set up at one end of the Colosseum. As it turns out Andrea Bocceli is going to play at the Colosseum on Monday night as a prelude to the football game on Wednesday. I was really intrigued by the Constantine’s Gate. It was massive (See photo above.)
Also, the Champions Cup (UEFA) is going to be played in Rome on Wednesday. We walked through the Champions Village near the Colosseum.
The end of the day was a chance for us to learn some Italian. Our instructor Maria was very good and we had a lot of laughs as we butchered our way through the language attempting to use Spanish and Spanglish. I think many of us will begin to use Spatalian.
For the night we decided to split up for dinner and enjoy a great evening in Rome.
Ciao,
Kitrick, Applied Kinesiology Master of Education (Sport Management)
On the way to the Vatican we went outside the original gates of Rome. They are centuries old, however, I forgot how they are. At the Vatican there were amazing sculptures, paintings, and tapestries. It was interesting to find out that the sculptures were originally painted. We passed one sculpture that had eyes painted on it, but most of the sculptures we saw were simply stone colored.
On the visit to St. Peter’s we were able to see the end of a church service. We originally did not know the service was going on, we heard organ music playing and began to wonder. As the service ended the guards blocked the crowd so they could walk past us to their quarters.
At the Colosseum we were able to see where the trap doors for the animals to come out, as in the movie Gladiator. A stage was being set up at one end of the Colosseum. As it turns out Andrea Bocceli is going to play at the Colosseum on Monday night as a prelude to the football game on Wednesday. I was really intrigued by the Constantine’s Gate. It was massive (See photo above.)
Also, the Champions Cup (UEFA) is going to be played in Rome on Wednesday. We walked through the Champions Village near the Colosseum.
The end of the day was a chance for us to learn some Italian. Our instructor Maria was very good and we had a lot of laughs as we butchered our way through the language attempting to use Spanish and Spanglish. I think many of us will begin to use Spatalian.
For the night we decided to split up for dinner and enjoy a great evening in Rome.
Ciao,
Kitrick, Applied Kinesiology Master of Education (Sport Management)
venerdì 22 maggio 2009
Day 1 - Minneapolis - Newark - Rome
Ciao tutti!
Thank you for visiting the blog of the University of Minnesota's Global Sport Management class. For the next two weeks, 15 Gopher students and one awesome professor will be traveling through Italy and Switzerland. Making stops in Rome, Florence, Treviso, Milan (Italy), Lausanne and Geneva (Switzerland), we will be experiencing European culture with a specific emphasis on sport and globalization.
Today, we arrived in Rome after a long day of travel from Minneapolis to Rome (via Newark, NJ). Our hotel is located quite close to the Ville Borghese and after we dropped off our luggage, the group split up, with two goals in mind -- checking out the sites and staying awake! The pictures below show that at least we were successful in the former, as a gaggle of us walked to the Four Fountains, the Spanish Steps, the Piazza del Popola, the Fiume Tevere (Tiber River) and the Trevi Fountain. - Austin Calhoun, Ph.D. student in Sport Sociology
For a complete look at all the pictures from our travels, check out our Flickr page. You can also follow as on Twitter (@GopherItalia)!
Thank you for visiting the blog of the University of Minnesota's Global Sport Management class. For the next two weeks, 15 Gopher students and one awesome professor will be traveling through Italy and Switzerland. Making stops in Rome, Florence, Treviso, Milan (Italy), Lausanne and Geneva (Switzerland), we will be experiencing European culture with a specific emphasis on sport and globalization.
Today, we arrived in Rome after a long day of travel from Minneapolis to Rome (via Newark, NJ). Our hotel is located quite close to the Ville Borghese and after we dropped off our luggage, the group split up, with two goals in mind -- checking out the sites and staying awake! The pictures below show that at least we were successful in the former, as a gaggle of us walked to the Four Fountains, the Spanish Steps, the Piazza del Popola, the Fiume Tevere (Tiber River) and the Trevi Fountain. - Austin Calhoun, Ph.D. student in Sport Sociology
For a complete look at all the pictures from our travels, check out our Flickr page. You can also follow as on Twitter (@GopherItalia)!mercoledì 4 marzo 2009
Soccer at its Finest!
Ciao,
Today we traveled over to the Univeristy of Lausanne by metro to listen to a lecture on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) by Professor Chappelle. During this lecture, we learned a lot about all of the different aspects that go into the Olympics and the history of how the IOC has managed to become what it is today. We also learned about the changes that have occurred throughout the Olympics from year to year that deal with certain topics such as doping, youth participation, and even the religious aspects of sport.
After the lecture we headed to the official Olympic Museum. We had a guided tour that gave us some insight on the history of the Olympics. We were able to touch a gold, silver, and bronze medal as part of the exhibit. This part was very neat for all of us since many of us will probabably never have the opportunity to be a part of the Olympics. We were also able to see some of the more recent Olympic awards that we could relate to and remember watching on TV. An interesting fact that we learned about the Olympic symbol (the 5 interlocking rings), was that each color of the rings is contained in every single country's flag. There is not one flag that does not contain one of the 5 colors in the Olympic symbol!
With the conclusion of the tour, we had another lecture with Maria Bogner who is the head of the IOC Olympic Studies Center. She showed us a very neat video of the Beijing Olympics and also gave us a little more background information on the Olympics and the types of things that students do at the IOC Olympic Studies Center. We were also taken downstairs to the archive room to see some of the original documents from Pierre Coubertin (the person who rejuvenated the Olympics after tge Romans destroyed them). We also saw a thank you letter that was signed by Adolf Hitler. These documents were extremely rare and it was exciting for us to have the opportunity to look at these.
The last thing that we did at the Olympic museum was see the library of resources. There was an entire library dedicated to sports and the only books inside were about sports or related to sports in one way or another. We had to opportunity to look all around and read anything that we were interested in learning more about.
After the Olympic Museum we hopped on a bus toward Geneva. On the way we stopped to watch a professional women's championship soccer game about ten minutes away from Geneva. The two teams playing were Nyon (the local team)and Geneva. The score of the game at half time was 1-0 Geneva. However, in the second half, Nyon was not going to back down. Nyon ended up tying the game in the 70th minute, 1-1. This sent the game into the two 15 minute overtimes that had to be played the whole way through. After the two over times, both teams had scored a goal making it 2-2. This then sent the teams into a penalty kick shoot-out. The shoot-out ended up going to 8 different shooters, which was CRAZY!!!!!!!!!!! It was so exciting watching these women compete and succeed in these pressure situations!!!! Finally, after a long battle the local team, Nyon won!!!! We couldn't have asked for a better soccer game. We also arranged for a group picture with the winning team which will be a nice souvenir to have. We were exhausted after our long day and all crashed once we got to Geneva.
Ciao Tutti,
Lindsey Schwartz
B.S. Kinesiology Major, Pre-Vet Studies
Today we traveled over to the Univeristy of Lausanne by metro to listen to a lecture on the International Olympic Committee (IOC) by Professor Chappelle. During this lecture, we learned a lot about all of the different aspects that go into the Olympics and the history of how the IOC has managed to become what it is today. We also learned about the changes that have occurred throughout the Olympics from year to year that deal with certain topics such as doping, youth participation, and even the religious aspects of sport.
After the lecture we headed to the official Olympic Museum. We had a guided tour that gave us some insight on the history of the Olympics. We were able to touch a gold, silver, and bronze medal as part of the exhibit. This part was very neat for all of us since many of us will probabably never have the opportunity to be a part of the Olympics. We were also able to see some of the more recent Olympic awards that we could relate to and remember watching on TV. An interesting fact that we learned about the Olympic symbol (the 5 interlocking rings), was that each color of the rings is contained in every single country's flag. There is not one flag that does not contain one of the 5 colors in the Olympic symbol!
With the conclusion of the tour, we had another lecture with Maria Bogner who is the head of the IOC Olympic Studies Center. She showed us a very neat video of the Beijing Olympics and also gave us a little more background information on the Olympics and the types of things that students do at the IOC Olympic Studies Center. We were also taken downstairs to the archive room to see some of the original documents from Pierre Coubertin (the person who rejuvenated the Olympics after tge Romans destroyed them). We also saw a thank you letter that was signed by Adolf Hitler. These documents were extremely rare and it was exciting for us to have the opportunity to look at these.
The last thing that we did at the Olympic museum was see the library of resources. There was an entire library dedicated to sports and the only books inside were about sports or related to sports in one way or another. We had to opportunity to look all around and read anything that we were interested in learning more about.
After the Olympic Museum we hopped on a bus toward Geneva. On the way we stopped to watch a professional women's championship soccer game about ten minutes away from Geneva. The two teams playing were Nyon (the local team)and Geneva. The score of the game at half time was 1-0 Geneva. However, in the second half, Nyon was not going to back down. Nyon ended up tying the game in the 70th minute, 1-1. This sent the game into the two 15 minute overtimes that had to be played the whole way through. After the two over times, both teams had scored a goal making it 2-2. This then sent the teams into a penalty kick shoot-out. The shoot-out ended up going to 8 different shooters, which was CRAZY!!!!!!!!!!! It was so exciting watching these women compete and succeed in these pressure situations!!!! Finally, after a long battle the local team, Nyon won!!!! We couldn't have asked for a better soccer game. We also arranged for a group picture with the winning team which will be a nice souvenir to have. We were exhausted after our long day and all crashed once we got to Geneva.
Ciao Tutti,
Lindsey Schwartz
B.S. Kinesiology Major, Pre-Vet Studies
Iscriviti a:
Post (Atom)