July 20-Fencing, CN Tower, Women's Basketball Gold Medal Game
Fencing is one of those sports where TV doesn't do it justice. That's why I wanted to go see it live. And it was awesome! I saw the first rounds of men's and women's sabre, which is the sword that bends and you can hit your opponent anywhere from head to torso. They started with pool play, an hour of rapid-fire bouts. Then they started the elimination bracket on four strips at once. Very cool to watch. I also learned that fencers are some of the most down-to-earth athletes out there. Prime example, Mariel Zagunis. I saw the two-time Olympic gold medalist (and U.S. flag bearer at the Opening Ceremony in London) during the break before the start of the men's session and she was incredibly gracious, taking a picture with me and talking for a few minutes. That's when I learned she might not hang it up after Rio. She told me she wants to keep fencing as long as possible, and she's never been to Tokyo.
 |
| One of us has two Olympic fencing gold medals. The other does not. |
After fencing, I had a long break before the start of the basketball game, so I took advantage of the time to head up to the top of Toronto's signature landmark--the CN Tower. The wait to get to the top was an hour, but it was well worth it. The elevator that brings you 1,100 feet up takes less than a minute. And the views of Toronto from the top are breathtaking. They said that on a clear day, you can see as far as Rochester, which is almost 100 miles away. There's also a separate observation deck called the SkyPod (1,500 feet) that's slightly higher up and gives you an uninterrupted 360-degree panorama that's totally spectacular. Oh, and there's also a glass floor that gives you a look straight down, letting you know exactly how high you really are.
My final stop on Monday was the women's basketball final between the United States and Canada. The basketball games were played at the old Maple Leaf Gardens, which has been converted into Ryerson University's Athletic Center. They still have plenty of pictures and other artifacts reminding you of what the venue used to be, though. As for the game, the U.S. was expected to dominate and had an eight-point lead after the first quarter. But UConn's Kia Nurse took over and Canada, buoyed by the home crowd, ended up pulling off the upset. Fellow UConn Huskies Breana Stewart and Moriah Jefferson were on the American team, and they were NOT feeling the silver. After baseball and basketball, I was also over the U.S. losing to Canada in gold medal games.
July 21-Track & Field, Beach Volleyball Finals
On Tuesday, track & field started. I planned the timing of my trip around the track & field schedule, so I was obviously excited for the start. Tuesday morning's heats were actually the first of three track & field sessions I attended. The main event was the prelims in the 100 meters, but they also had a couple finals. I was right behind the 100-meter start line, so I had a pretty good view for all of it. I also had a pretty good view for the men's pole vault, which was right in front of me. Shawn Barber, who won the NCAA title a couple years ago at Akron, won the gold medal. And he's Canadian, which the crowd obviously liked.
I had a short turnaround after track finished, though. I had to get to Pan Am Park for beach volleyball. Canada played in the women's bronze medal match, which meant I had the same problem finding a seat that I had at baseball. The fact that they played Brazil didn't help matters. It was packed and it was HOT! But being at a beach volleyball match was just as cool as it looks on TV. The Canadians lost, but Melissa Humana-Parades of the Canadian team came out after the match and thanked the crowd for all their support during the week. Very cool. Up next was the gold medal match between Argentina and Cuba, which ended up being a really good matchup that the Argentines eventually won.
Even though I also had tickets to the men's final, they had to clear out the stadium between sessions, so I had a couple hours to chill. Fortunately the beach volleyball stadium was in Pan Am Park, which has like five venues and a lot of interactive stuff for the fans to do. I got to hold the medals (which wasn't as cool as wearing one) and take a picture holding the torch, among other things. I also made a lot of progress on my mission to get a picture with somebody from every country, running into the beach volleyball coach from the Cayman Islands and the women's handball team from Puerto Rico. I also bumped into Raisa and Ze, my Brazilian fans from swimming, in the food court. I told them that the women's beach volleyball team from Brazil was actually out in the park with their bronze medals taking pictures with the fans. We all then went inside as soon as we were able to for the men's final.
Because I went in early, I had no seating problems at the men's final. I was right behind the court in like the fourth row. Raisa and Ze, meanwhile, were in the front row right at center court in the Brazilian fan section. I've gotta admit, the men's beach volleyball finals might've been my favorite event of the 14 I attended. Beach volleyball. At night. Just as awesome as you'd think it is. Two excellent matches helped, too. Cuba beat Chile for the bronze, then Mexico knocked off Brazil for the gold. Totally cool experience. And on the way out, I met this crazy Cuban fan who was excited for the photo op, and the two of us even joked about the fact that we're, as I said, "allowed to be friends now."
So that's days four and five. One last installment to come, covering the rest of the trip. That's when I saw the 100-meter finals and a pair of wins by U.S. women's teams (including one over Canada).
No comments:
Post a Comment