Kata Finishes, MTB on the Horizon!

 

Stasa Arnold in the First Round
Olympians, 

It's been some time since the last update, but fear not! Athletes were kicking and punching their way through the karate event right up to the final last Saturday. Didn't catch it on ESPN8? See the summary below. Next, we gear up for the long awaited, much anticipated: mountain biking event! And don't forget to wax your board for surfing!

Next Up: CYCLING: CROSS-COUNTRY MOUNTAIN BIKE

In honor of Greg Nigon's big accomplishment (getting married), we're finally answering his repeated requests for a mountain biking event. Join us at 10:30am on July 9th at the Human Powered Trails in La Crosse, WI. More details to follow for those who are interested.

Just finished: KARATE I: KATA

Over the past three months, the kata tournament has slowly played out. It began with a seeding round to place the eight competitors in a ranked bracket. After that it was one-on-one matches and single elimination. Kate Nigon showed early promise, entering the bracket as the number one seed with her powerful forward stance. The quarterfinals were all about punching and blocking, and all the high seeds advanced, except Katrina Sexauer who lost in an inner household shown to Gustave Sexauer. Greg Nigon, Cecily Kennedy, and Wendell Bliss all showed strong spirit, but it wasn't enough. It was all upsets in the semifinal, as Stasa Arnold and Gustave kicked their way to the championship. The early rounds focused on basic kata techniques, but for the dahlia (medal) rounds, a full kata sequence had to be linked together, akin to what a yellow belt test would call for. Kate Nigon, backed by snow-capped mountains, prevailed for the bronze dahlia over Dan Nigon-Kirgis. In the live final, Gustave sent punches heard across the country via Zoom, but Stasa combined the solid footwork, rhythmic timing, and steady blocks with her punches to earn the gold, in 100F degree heat, none-the-less. Special thanks to Alison Nigon-Kirgis for organizing and judging the event with her black belt expertise.

Final Match: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1koPqcBAB6uOQwzAjqqIkhsE16jSXIMek/view?usp=sharing

Karate Page: https://sites.google.com/site/gtsolympics/home/records-of-past-events/karate

Ongoing: SURFING I: INDIVIDUAL

If you're hungry for a podium, this is your chance! Send in a one minute edit of you surfing by the end of the year to compete in this "anywhere" event, our first foray into the new Olympic sport of surfing. So far, no videos have been sent in, so you've got a great chance of success!

The website: https://sites.google.com/site/gtsolympics/ 

-Gustave

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Figure Skating I: Singles

Image
Olympians, I'm trying something new: blog updates for Our Olympic events. If you have any feedback on this format for updates, let me know. The site is currently in a state of flux as Google is discontinuing the old "Sites" and forcing a move over to the new Google Sites which means that every page will have to be reformatted. The site will be revamped when I can throw more time at it. But without further ado: RECAP - FIGURE SKATING I: SINGLES I t was one of the most technical and ambitious events we have ever attempted. Guided by our resident expert figure skater and eventual event judge, Raphaëlle Siemers, the format was laid out for a figure skating event filled with tricks attainable by even beginner skaters. But c'mon, a waltz jump!? By the end of February, six athletes had braved the cold, icy flatness and sent in their videos from wherever they could find ice time. Just days ago, the short and long routines were brought before the Honorable Judge Siemers as
Read more

Going It Alone

Image
  1st Place, unopposed Olympians, I recently signed up for a Nordic ski race and wasn't able to rouse any of Our friends to make the drive to compete in Flagstaff, but was determined to enter the race solo. As I went to retrieve my registration packet I announced that I was in the 10km classic race and got the reply, "You must be Gustave! You're the only one in that division." Racing at Nordic Village got me thinking about the future of Our Olympics, and the struggle it is for anyone, myself included, to agree to try something new or to even have the free time to do it. Our Games have periodically struggled with attendance, but after joining a race organized by an outside organization and finding myself alone in my division, it's clear that Our Olympics is no worse off than larger and more established sporting groups. We will continue in the quest to see our athletes compete in every Olympic event, because any periods of struggle are worth pushing through for tho
Read more

Move Busted

Image
  Freezin' the Breeze Olympians,   It's been a while since our last update, so here comes a big one! Index: Coming Up Just Finished: Breaking Just Finished: Cycling Honorable Mention Coming up: Tuba City Games! T his October we will inaugurate Our Games in Tuba City with an in person athletics event in Tuba: the 100m dash! Join us at 6pm on October 16th at the Tuba City High School Track (access via the gate at the corner of Edgewater Dr and Hilltop St. If attendance allows, we will also run the 4x100m relay! Coming up: Cross-country Skiing III:  50k (55km) Classical Mass Start C are to join us in the most famous ski race in the USA? Sign up for the American Birkebeiner and race with us in the 55km commemoration of a 1206 smuggling of an illegitimate prince! Also, mark your calendar for xc ski races at Flagstaff's Nordic Village Just Finished: Breaking: Individual N ew to the Olympic Games this year was Breaking, AKA Breakdancing. Since January, Our Olympics took up the
Read more