Women's Volleyball Medal Games

Unfortunately since I work at night, I wasn't able to see the Chinese women's team beat Cuba 3-1 for the Bronze medal this morning. However, reading flash quotes and press conference highlights that my colleagues have collected, I realize that I missed out on something special.

Cheng Zhonghe, the head coach of the Chinese team is usually a mild-mannered guy, someone who rarely ever shows emotion win or loss was reported to have been sobbing uncontrollably after China won the match.

When asked why he was crying, he was quoted to have said:

"It was such a tough game. Many of our players have injries, especially the old players. They have experienced a lot of setbacks. Unfortunately we didn't realise my goal - to get into the final. But I know that it's really not easy for the players, so I'm very proud of them."

It just shows how special these games actually are. When a team can still be excited and giddy about winning a Bronze medal, after being the previous Gold medal team, you know how much it means to these athletes and coaches.

The USA women played valiantly against Brazil tonight, but they lost 3-1. Brazil has been especially impressive as they haven't dropped a single set comming into this match. So as a consolation prize, the US women are the first team to win a set against Brazil. Even with the silver medal, I believe the team surpassed their expectations and while they aren't Gold medalists, I still think they're quite satisfied with their result.

Second to last day

Tomorrow will be the final time I put on the blue Adidas volunteer uniform that can be seen quite readily everywhere. It will definitely be a bittersweet moment, as this entire experience could quite possibly be the wildest thing I've ever done. It's been nearly three months since I've been home (had a foot on US soil), and I think I'm finally starting to feel homesick. This in no way takes away from anything that has happened in my time in Beijing.

I've been a part of something so special, so unique and so exhilarating, that while I do feel this urge to finally return home, a very large part of me wishes I could continue working.

I remember the first few days, where as a whole us Purdue students bonded through four hour long bus rides to the Great Wall and sewage treatment plants. The next few weeks included excursions to different places of interest in Beijing, which included a lot of bar searching and hazy taxi rides back to the CUC. When work finally started, I was with nine other classmates learning about the differences between the sprint, keirin and madison events of cycling track. I remember wanting to try my best as we feverishly jotted down quotes and prepared intelligent questions to ask the athletes.

I still recall the confusion that came with being switched out of cycling to volleyball. The disappointment of not being with my friends, but the excitement of working at a new venue with a new sport. I remember my first interview with an Olympian, a twenty-five year old Egyptian setter who was practically just as excited as I was for the games.

I remember sitting in my bed watching the opening ceremony, with my mouth gaping with awe as somehow thousands of performers managed to move in-sync to create some of the most visually impressive sights ever.

I remember arriving back at the dorm at two or three in the morning everyday due to the working the night shift. I remember the craziness of the crowd when the Chinese teams introduced prior to every match.

Tomorrow will be the the gold medal game for the USA women, and it'll be the last day for me to create some final memories.

USA JIA YOU! 中国加油！

When I finally decided to spend some money on some Olympic memorabilia, I realized shopping isn't that easy, especially when you're holding a blue t-shirt that says USA in one hand and a white t-shirt that says China in the other.

There are a few questions that I've had to answer many times since my arrival in Beijing. One of the most common questions is: "If the US plays China, who do you cheer for?" I usually respond with whoever is the underdog, just to simplify matters. But honestly, I've never really sat down and though about my answers. When the US men's basketball team played China, I really did cheer for China, since I knew that they were going to be blown out anyways. However, when the two women's volleyball teams played, I was cheering for China as well. I could just be trying to adapt, as most of the people I'm working with are Chinese, but it seems to me that I rarely ever cheer for the US team when they're facing a Chinese team head-on. To top it off, I seem to be rooting for China to win the medal count as well. So am I really a patriotic Chinese? I'm not sure if I have the answer to that.

I have always seen myself as an American. When I was younger, I would do everything I could to prove to others that I was "made in the USA". I even refused to learn mandarin because I thought that would tarnish my American image. Since being at these games, I've realized how lucky I actually am to have two countries to call my own. Not only do I get to cheer and root for twice the number of athletes, I feel a lot more diverse than everyone else. I can't be disappointed either way if the US and China go head to head, my favorite team is going to win either way.

I walked out of that Nike store with a white t-shirt that had CHINA inked onto the front. Sure I hold a USA passport, but does that even matter?

Tickets Tickets Tickets!

If you haven't noticed, I'm a bit of a basketball nut. I love playing the sport, I love watching the sport, and I love just talking about the sport, but for all my passion for the game, I have never watched a single basketball game live. Sorry, but the Purdue men's and women's team don't count for this purpose.

Imagine my suprise when I was told a few days ago that my aunt had a ticket to the men's basketball finals on the last day of the Olympics. The story gets even sweeter as I realized that I would be able to watch both the bronze medal game and the final itself. If for whatever freak reason the US team were to lose in the semifinals, I would still be able to see them. It's three days away from those games and I can barely control my excitement. I had to ask for the last day off, switch a plane ticket and find some some extreme measures of transportation to make it to those games, but I know it will be well worth it.

Expect a post about the experience when the time comes.

Goofing off (kinda)

While we turn on the seriousness when work needs to be done, there is a lot of downtime while we're at work. We've all found creative ways to pass the time while having a few good laughs. Personally, I love the fact that we have three televisions in our office, hooked up to live feeds from all the different venues. Not only have I been able to watch some intense volleyball matches (mainly the Chinese teams going into fifth-set games), but I was also able to watch some very exciting basketball games on TV as well.

The venue offers a lot of entertainment, provided you spend a little time and effort to go look for it. One form of entertainment is trying on Fuwa heads. They're quite bulky, and you really do look absolutely ridiculous.

Home stretch (part duex)

My previous post listed the things I've been yearning for, and this post will compliment that by talking about the things I will miss most when I leave Beijing.

The Olympic experience

I don't think I really need to explain why this is the first thing on my mind, but I will talk about what makes this trip so special. When I go to work everyday, I look around and I see thousands of people crowding around. Many times I see a sea of blue Adidas volunteer uniforms and I recognize that I'm part of something that only happens every four years. It still hasn't hit me, but I am starting to come to the realization that I've talked to athletes that some people would die to just see in person. It's completely insane, and I can't wait to get the opportunity to sit back and just immerse myself in thought as to how crazy everything has been.

The prices of things

I usually always miss the prices of stuff in China everytime I have to fly back to the States. While I have splurged a bit on some items, I realized that I've spent less here in my two months then what I would usually spend in the States, even being conservative and all.

The people I've met and worked with

They weren't joking when they told us that if we didn't work as a team, our time here as FQRs would be very difficult. Every person is important, and everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses. My colleagues have been instrumental in making things happen when I'm in a tough spot, and hopefully I've done the same for them. I would like to say thanks to my manager Joy (Zhang Jia Ning) for allowing me to not only learn about what it takes to work in a high pressure environment but to make our time as enjoyable as possible.

Home stretch

As my time in Beijing as a volunteer is winding down, I've started to think about what I miss most from home, and what I will most from my stay in Beijing. It's interesting to see how the most mundane things become so important when you aren't able to have them everyday.

Here's the list for things I miss most about home.

Texas Roadhouse, Olive Garden (especially Steak Gorgonzola Alfredo)

I miss the good 'ol extra large portions of American food. When you've taken a bite out of a twelve ounce medium rare filet mignon, a bowl of white rice and some bok-choy just does not compare at all.

Midnight trips to Walmart/McDonalds/IHOP, being able to drive to places whenever you want

Having your own car, and being able to control where you want to go whenever you want is such a luxury. Sans the almost impossible Beijing traffic, the size of the city makes it extremely difficult to satisfy needs on a whim.

Watching movies when they first come out

No complaints about less than a dollar DVDs, but I miss the aspect of standing in line waiting for the premiere of a movie. Ironman, Transformers and Harold and Kumar come into mind, but I've been suffering as I haven't been able to lay my eyes on this year's summer hit; The Dark Knight.

Uncensored internet

I didn't think this would affect me as much as it did, because I had lived in China before. While I can understand blocking porn and some other questionable material, when I can't read a friend's blog, or *gasp* get on Facebook it does tend to irk you.

The Media Mecca

So I visited my future office as I was very graciously granted a tour of the MPC (Main Press Center) of the Beijing Olympics by my volleyball manager. It was pretty much an entire building composed of offices and amenities for those of the media and media affiliated.

I’ve been to quite a few busy office buildings, including companies with prime real estate in midtown Manhattan, but nothing even comes close to the hustle and bustle that the MPC housed. There’s a laundry list of amenities, but those that I saw and those that come to mind at first include a barbershop, a massage parlor and last but not least a McDonalds.

An Olympic First

As part of a trial for the Beijing Olympic Broadcasting and the Olympic News Service, I was the first ever video flash quote interviewer. This was definitely one of those, “Wow, cool!” after the fact moments, but it was still a very fun experience nonetheless. I was told only twenty minutes prior to the game that I would actually be participating in this event and there definitely was some apprehension. I have had experience with a microphone, a camera and an extremely tall athlete before but this was definitely on a different level. Thankfully I was the anonymous hand holding an obnoxious green microphone, but the mere knowledge of the fact that I could have a lot of people listen and “watch” me ask a stupid question to an athlete was mind-blowing.

The humor of it all is probably that the one thing I jokingly requested beforehand, a box to stand on so I could be more in-line with the height of the extremely tall players ended up being somewhat of an issue. The summary from whichever headquarter in charge of this trial commented on the soft volume of the interview/flash quote itself. A very large part of that was my fault, as I was intimated of placing a microphone right up against an athlete’s mouth, much less one who has the comfort of the locker room just mere minutes away.

Spare box anyone?

The Return of a Legend

‘Jenny’ Lang Ping is probably the most decorated volleyball player to come out of China. Nicknamed the ‘Iron Hammer’, her ferocious serve and precision spiking led China to their first Olympic volleyball gold medal in the 1984 Los Angeles games. An ironic twist is that Jenny is now the head coach of the US women’s team, a rival to the favored Chinese team. A week ago while I was watching Jenny run her team through practice, I couldn’t help but to stare in awe as she still was able to spike extremely efficiently as many of her current players were not able to successfully defend her spikes. Every player from 1 to 12 had their fair share of embarrassing moments as a nearly 50 year old woman was toying with them. I remembered jokingly making a comment to our ONS manager that Jenny could probably still play at an effective level.

The point of the Lang Ping introduction is the fact that the Chinese women played the US team tonight. I was extremely curious as to what kind of the reception Jenny would receive as the opposing head coach. While I can’t say I was entirely surprised that Jenny received the loudest cheer, far surpassing any individual or team for that matter of the tournament so far. China didn’t just merely welcome Jenny back; they still remembered her accomplishments and gave her all the love in the world for them. Want to know how important she is? Chinese President Hu Jingtao was in attendance.

In another nail biting game, the US team edged the Chinese in a five set match. While the crowd stayed behind to cheer their home team for a very valiant effort, the noise was definitely on a completely different level as Jenny walked through the mixed-zone and raised her hand in acknowledgement of the crowd’s appreciation. It didn’t matter that she was an enemy, an obstacle in the way of the beloved Chinese team, Jenny was and still is a Chinese legend.

The Home Crowd

I might have witnessed the greatest display of patriotism ever tonight. Qualifying by default of being the host country, the Chinese men’s volleyball team played their second match of the 2008 Olympic Games. China has not qualified for the Olympics in twenty-four years and the men’s team has not enjoyed much success in recent years. Almost always overshadowed by the dominant women’s team, one that took home the gold medal in the 2004 Athens games, the Chinese men are relatively unknown to most mainland Chinese, let alone the international community.

Their relative obscurity did not diminish the amount of support they received one bit. The stadium was packed to the brim with the 18,000 seat stadium filled with almost entirely of Chinese fans expressing their unrelenting support. The noise, the energy and the emotion was unparallel to anything I’ve ever been a part of. The Chinese team was facing a young Venezuelan squad which included a lot of talent, but not nearly enough experience to make a serious push for the quarter finals. As one of the few teams that the Chinese had a decent shot of beating, the anticipation and expectation was oozing through the crowd. Every point won by the Chinese resulted in a thunderous cheer and every Venezuelan serve was greeted by a chorus of booing. The match definitely lived up to anyone’s wildest expectations as it was only decided by the fifth set tiebreaker. The entire Capital Stadium was rocking when the home team prevailed 16 to 14.

As a supposedly unbiased member of the media, I even couldn’t help but to cheer.

USA vs China Men's Basketball

With an estimated one billion viewers, this game will go down as one of the most watched sporting events ever. Political implications aside, I find it fantastic as a Chinese-American to watch something this special mainly because I've proved myself on courts everywhere I played that I could hold my own. I remember when I first played at Purdue, I would rarely get the ball passed to me but after awhile I was able to play just as well if not better than some of the other guys.

China was blown out at the end of the game 101-70, but one only has to look at the standing ovation Yao got when he left the court with around four minutes left to understand how important sports can be regardless of nationality. Yao was injured for the majority of the season playing in the NBA and he still isn't near 100% now, but in an interview earlier this summer he did state that if he was unable to play in this year's Olympic games, it would be the biggest disappointment in his career.

There was an obvious difference in skill level between the two teams, but I'm extremely proud to root for both teams and to see how much appreciation basketball recieves in China.

First Real Day at Volleyball

The games are now very much underway and I've just finished my first day as an ONS Flash Quote Reporter. All the work and trouble that we've gone through since last October has now finally accumulated into this. It was worth every second.

My day started off with the host country China playing against an obviously outmatched Venezuelan women's team. Just a few days ago we were able to interview the Venezuelan squad and the scary thing was the fact that most of the athletes on that team were quite a few years younger than us. There are at least four members of the team who are under 18 and the oldest player is 25.

China was able to save most of its energy, as they played the entire match with mainly an even mixture of starters and second-string players. Post-game mixed zone was quite possibly the most chaotic thing I've witnessed in my life. Chinese media mobbed each and every player that walked through the zone and hearing the soft-spoken Chinese girls was like listening for a single raindrop in a thunderstorm. I was quite disappointed as I wasn't able to get the quality quotes that I was used to getting in the much less frantic training sessions. I did managed to redeem myself by being a useful copy-taker.

The second game of the evening was a much more evenly matched USA versus Japan. The US women were heavily favored to win the game, but it was common knowledge that Japan wasn't just a pushover. It was obvious that this was going to be a game where every point counted as neither team managed to push their lead to over five points throughout the first-set. Halfway through the second set, which Japan managed to win, we learned of the news that Todd Bachman father-in-law of the USA Men's Volleyball head coach was brutally murded earlier that evening. The news is a complete shock, and it completely undermines that purpose of the Olympic games.

The rest of the evening was extremely frantic as we ran back and forth from mixed zones, ONS offices and Press Conference room. It ended up being a late night but it was worth it.

Opening Ceremony

First off I have to say, there probably wasn't a better way to spend three hours in Beijing than to watch one of the most extravagant shows on earth. The Chinese government was not joking when they said they utilized nearly ten thousand people for the various acts. The final figure would end up being nearly fifteen thousand performers with nearly five thousand members of the army and military sector.

My aunt and uncle were able to obtain tickets to the actual event, but from what I've heard from them afterward, they ended up watching the jumbotron more than the actual performers. These sort of grand scale events are made for TV. To emphasize that fact even more, the director of the entire ceremony is a renowned Chinese/HK action movie director Zhang Yi Mo, who is known for his attention to detail, which is much better suited on a television screen anyways.

I spent my opening ceremony in my dorm with the company of a fellow ONS volunteer. Her dorm on campus does not have a TV so she came to watch it in my room instead. It was a very interesting experience as her knowledge of Chinese customs and cultures and my love for sports and athletes in general made for some interesting home commentary.

The ceremony was absolutely fantastic in all of its aspects, but the drummers at the begginning blew me away. The coordination required to successfully pull off something like that is just mind-boggling. Congratulations to China on an amazing job and good luck to London to create its own legacy.

First day at Volleyball

I just finished my first day at volleyball and it was fantastic. Volleyball is a much higher profile sport than cycling, mainly due to the fact that the Chinese women's team are heavy favorites to defend their gold medal. There are a lot more volunteers at the Capital Indoor Stadium (CAS), and the amenities are much more bountiful at the venue. There are media lounges stocked with an assortment of food and beverages and the entire area have volunteers stationed to help you find your way around.

One of the coolest parts of being switched is the oh-so elusive upgrade card. Not only am I granted clearance into the CAS, I have also been given clearance to the BIT Gymnasium where many of the preliminary matches will be held. Although I highly doubt I will get a chance to visit the other stadium, the fact that I have the ability should I want to is pretty cool.


What I would describe to be the best part of being switched, is the fact that I get to meet new volunteers and managers. Everyone is extremely friendly and I quickly made friends with both the local Chinese volunteers and the two Australian volunteers as well. We bonded quite quickly and it couldn't have been sooner as we were thrust into our first "real" assignment at the games. The Egyptian men's volleyball team was engaged in their first practice/training session of the games, when we were assigned to interview and take flash quotes. We watched the athletes practice for an hour or so, and then had the amazing opportunity to talk to them face to face. The athletes were just as excited to be a part of the games as we were, and the entire experience is mind-blowing. I look forward to speaking with more athletes as the games progress.

Ballin

After a long week of work, the guys and I decided it was time to head back to the courts to get some run in. The seven or so games that we played were quite possibly the most competitive so far. Guys were getting knocked to the ground and jewelery was broken (Thanks to Chad, he did however apologize). We even managed to get some of our local volunteer counterparts to come out and play as well.

We ended the day going 6 and 2, with our losses occurring right as we got on and the last game we played. It's apparent that we don't nearly have the same stamina for Beijing heat as the locals do, as we were thirsting for water after every single game we played. Even as we lost the last game and were in the motions to leave, we were asked to stay and continue to play. The local guys at the court really enjoy the tougher competition that we bring, and it's extremely refreshing to have some competitive fun.

A final note: "Way to use your head there Chad." said Leroy Bridges.

Volleyball-Again?

Hopefully the final chapter of this on and off saga has been written. When I went into work on Thursday, I was told by one of the managers that whatever security clearances I required to work at volleyball had been completed. Even though the option to either stay with cycling or go to volleyball was entirely "my decision", I was put in a position that would've placed both volleyball and cycling managers in a tough spot. I'm extremely saddened that I have to leave Krystyna, Amy and Ernst, who are the wonderful cycling managers and experts that have guided me through mock mixed zones and press conferences, but I now have a new challenge to take on.

While on a a base level I understand volleyball quite a bit more than I understood cycling, I'm still not very familiar with the sport. The impression I seem to be getting is that I'll be used at volleyball mainly for my bilingual abilities. The Chinese women are heavy favorites to medal at the very least, and the volleyball manager would like me to translate their quotes in real-time to English. I guess get rid of the translator middleman.

I've been reading up on the rules and history of volleyball lately and hopefully I've built up a sufficient enough knowledge base to perform my job well. Volleyball is more of a high profile sport than cycling, and I believe there will be a lot more pressure at the National Indoor Stadium. I'm slated to start work August 9th and work from 6pm-12am every night until the 24th, which is when the games finish. The good news? I get to take a shuttle everyday instead of the subway. Heh.

Mock This

As the days leading to the opening ceremony dwindle down, our training has picked up and our skills as flash quote reporters are visibly increasing. Our ONS managers have put us through multiple rounds of mock mixed-zones and press conferences in preparation for us.

Nothing about the "mock" is relaxed though. Our experienced managers understand the fact that anything can happen when interacting with athletes, and have created various different scenarios for us to run through. One such situation included an upset athlete who wouldn't stop to talk to us, leading to a couple of reporters learning to quickly adapt to the situation. With one athlete unwilling to stop and talk, those reporters raced back to the other side of the mixed zone to pick a new athlete to take quotes from. These exercises were performed with deadlines. If you weren't able to complete the task in the time required, you understood the resulting consequences.

Everyone took to these exercises with full effort as many of us could be seen sprinting from mixed zones to offices and back. We completed around four exercises in total, and we received criticisms and suggestions after each mock event. Our performances improved each time, as we familiarized ourselves with the process more and more. As the day drew to a close, we all were exhausted from the intensity that was applied, but we were extremely grateful for the invaluable experience.

Our managers might not be real athletes, but not for a second did we question how realistic and how quite possibly our real Olympic experiences could mimic what we had just done. Hats off to our brilliant managers who had set up this wonderful experience, and I hope our confidence in our abilities to perform have risen.