Everyone's a Winner! Olympians,   We'll regale the tale of our wiff waffing as we greet the new year, Our Olympics style! Just Finished - TABLE TENNIS IV: TEAM "W here did all of these people come from?" "What's with the people in the fluorescent vests?" "Did you just get off work?" were all refrains heard in the Miller Center Monday night, when a rag tag group of wannabe ping pong playas infiltrated the normally subdued space of the Champlain Valley Table Tennis Club. After a few stretches and warm up volleys, it was show time for a Team Tennis Tournament with a format that there wasn't time enough to explain (Sorry attendees, the table below helps explain the Olympic format!) With three teams, it was a ripe setting for a classic round-robin. Surely that would sort out the best team! To start, The Unnamed Team's C and Neil drug out a win against the team in the high visibility safety jackets and turquoise-ish pants (Gustave and Luna...

  3x3: "We had a ball" Olympians,   The monthly excitement of  Our Olympics  continues! Next Up - TABLE TENNIS IV: TEAM G rab your paddle and head to the Miller Center, 130 Gosse Ct, Burlington for some team ping pong Monday the 20th at 6:30pm  (updated location/time, also $5/person). (Please RSVP to Gustave first.) We'll be using the Olympic team format which calls for teams of three and a best of five games as shown below. Bring your own team, or we'll find you partners! Note that we'll be "dropping in" on the Champlain Valley Table Tennis Club's public hours. Just Finished -  BASKETBALL II: 30N3 N ovember is a time to curl up in a ball and stay warm in your bed, right? Wrong! It's a time for arcing the ball over the competition and through the hoop while breaking a good sweat. This past month, two eager teams, Team B-Day and Team Elbows squared off on the half court for some 3x3 basketball. The teams were well matched, with little to no expe...

  Gustave on a surfin' safari Olympians,   After a late summer break, Our Olympics is back with a very special competition! Coming up Next: 30N3 BASKETBALL C opying yet another new event in the Olympic Games this year, Our Olympics will foray into 3x3 basketball on Saturday, November 13th from 4pm-6pm at the Miller Center in Burlington. RSVP by adding yourself to a team  here ! All skill levels are welcome (full disclosure: I haven't made a basket since 2019 and never played for school), and we can make teams from individuals and pairs if you don't already know who your two BFFs are. If you're unfamiliar with the rules, consult Wikipedia  for the full rundown, but here's an overview: Played on a half-court with one basket 1 point for baskets made within the arc 2 points for baskets made outside the arc The game ends when one team scores 21 points or 10 minutes of play have passed Otherwise similar to standard 5-a-side basketball Ongoing Event: SURFING I: INDIVUDAL ...

  From left to right: Kate and Greg Nigon on a break mid-match in Croquet IV, Luke Yarnall getting gnarly in Skateboarding I Olympians,   With the Tokyo Olympic Games starting this week, it's no wonder that Our Olympics is charging forward, full steam ahead. July began with mountain biking, shifted to croquet, and wrapped up with skateboarding. Just Finished: SKATEBOARDING I: STREET N ew to the Olympics this year is Skateboarding, both park and street. To match the Games, Our Games held a skateboarding competition in Williston, VT on the same day the Olympics started in Tokyo. Luke Yarnall flew in from San Diego just for the event and came prepared with a board to share. After about 20 minutes of warming up, the 45 second sessions were jump started by a thunder clap. Gustave Sexauer laid down the first run of five tricks, followed by Yarnall, Maddy Suender, and Katrina Sexauer. After incredible stunts including attempted kick flips, attempted ollies, attempted ground-to-hand b...

  Dan Nigon-Kirgis, David Nigon, and Gustave Sexauer at Cycling V Olympians,   After a grueling eleven year wait, Greg Nigon finally got his wish: a mountain bike Olympic event. It  was indeed overdue, as it's our fifth cycling event, but the first since 2013. With a stacked field of six determined bikers and 2.5 mountain bikes, today's event was turning heads at Upper Hixon in La Crosse, WI. Just finished: CYCLING V: CROSS-COUNTRY MOUNTAIN BIKING T he best weren't saved for last, as we sent them out in the first wave of our 1.5mi time trial course. Wave one saw Dan Nigon-Kirgis on a borrowed Specialized, David Nigon on his own mountain bike, and Renee Nigon on a "mountain bike" with no suspension, standard brakes, and a ripped up seat. Offset by a minute at the start, Dan led the way and avoided being passed as he projected himself across the finish line and his breakfast into a trash can. David sped past turn one, blaming the course setters' signage, but som...

  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 I n 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 O ver 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,...

Olympians,   We've got our eyes set on Japan. Both karate and surfing are having their Olympic debut this summer, but we're beating Tokyo 2020 to the punch. I'm pleased to announce our next two events, but first I must say that I don't know whether to be proud of such a convincing April Fool's joke in Extreme Ironing, or if I should be checking my sanity since no one thought this goofiness was out of my norm. KARATE I: KATA A lison Nigon-Kirgis is to thank for helping usher in our first Karate event: Kata. While Kumite style Karate involves physically sparring with an opponent, Kata does not require actual fighting . It's an event where two competitors demonstrate their moves and techniques against an imaginary opponent. For our event, we will place the willing participants in a March Madness style single elimination bracket. Alison (a black-belt herself) will develop routines that get progressively harder by round. Competitors will film themselves doing the ro...