Written by Valts Rozentāls
Draining energy. Monochromatic scene unfolded as the fog crept across the landscape and was accompanied by half-awake teens. Practising in the morning is not an easy task, but it builds character. We are preparing for the tournament this afternoon, so we planned less drills and more scrimmages for decision making – 1on1, 2on2 and 4on4. All with disadvantage for the defence to stimulate offensive decision making, fast finishes and defensive prioritising.
Strengthened by the breakfast we take a short walk to the culture house for some Szekler dance lessons. We can already feel the temperature rising. Our luck today was the fog which held back the sun long enough for us to properly enjoy the first half of the day. It’s always interesting to see how the groups each year handle the more intimate setting of dancing. Up till now we’ve seen it to work amazingly – breaking boundaries and bringing the youth closer together. After the dancing, this can also be observed in their free time. Groups are not strictly Munich and Bögöz anymore. They are all trying to communicate, playing games together and having fun. Now it’s becoming one big group instead. During feedback in the evening we can hear that language is still a barrier, but also here it has gotten better and it’s becoming easier for the kids to talk in English.
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In the afternoon we received guests from Székelyudvarhely and Székelykeresztúr for a small basketball tournament outdoors. The weather is playing nice (although a bit hot…) and everybody is having a lot of fun. We decided for short ten minute games which rounded up to sixteen games. Ten minutes were just enough as the hot weather started to take its toll as the games went by. What we really liked to see is that also the parents came to support their children and took refuge on the sidelines in the shade. The vibe really was like in the best American movies – community meeting up for a sports event together and having a good time.
At the end our friends from Udvarhely were the victors for boys and the mixed team of Bögöz and Munich for girls.
