Tracking Maya's sporty efforts in Uganda

Maya merrily left Ethiopia without us this morning on her way to Kampala, Uganda. Her school and the seven others in the Association of Eastern and Southern Africa international schools (ISSEA) have their annual track and cross-country teams championship meet over the next three days. We’re envious and excited for her. The option of going as spectator parents arose. We asked her if she would mind us coming along. She pleasantly gave us the Heisman (translation: no trip for us). After all, this is her gig and we respect the bonding time she gets with her fellow travelers. LIke more than a few of you, though, we’ll be checking in repeatedly over the next three days of competition to see what we can see.

For regular readers of what we do here, you may recall our collective surprise at Maya’s place on the ICS team. She ran track in middle school back in Seattle. Emphasis on “ran” given her choice of events. Sprints, some relays, the usual array of stuff for a speedy athlete moving somewhat constantly in between soccer seasons. Just after we arrived in Addis in August, tryouts began and Maya showed up with an attitude that said, “put me in wherever, Coach.” So they did. Into the throwing events. Javelin and shot put and the triple jump - oh my. Which are the events she’ll be doing in Kampala as one of 14 athletes (per gender) on the full varsity team of 28. As a 9th grader who’d never done any of those events before arriving in Africa, Maya has done something cool even just by making the team.

I will admit that there are some stresses for us when it came to sending Maya off for the two-hour flight to Uganda. Complex-ish visas and unseen host families and keeping tabs with sketchy communication systems - all pretty standard stuff for folks (unlike us…) with multiple postings under their belts. Actually, we were more stressed out by trying to get laundry done last night - the ongoing bane of our existence it sometimes seems. And then this morning’s departure had a twist when Addis’s security situation took a turn toward suckiness. Maya’s recently landed. With a nice big bag of freshly-laundered clothes and some lingering healthy snacks brought home from Cape Town, no less.

The appearance of unforced smiles before 7am - an unlikely reality.

I grew up naively thinking I faced crazy long trips for sports. That teeny-towns high school sports conference in Wisconsin’s Northwoods featured bus rides that were up to 90 minutes one-way (sometimes all the way to Pittsville…yes, an actual place…much less Granton). The playoffs would take us even farther. On those rare occasions that we went to the State Championships, Madison was nearly four hours away. I know, I know - that was a long time ago and times have changed mightily.

Young athletes nowadays rack up the frequent flier miles before they’re even in middle school. Still, I always take notice of traveling teams in airports. All those sporty youngsters with their neck pillows and wireless headphones and bed-headed nonchalance. Maya’s getting her first taste of being on that side of the cotton sweatsuit curtain today. I’m not sure she heard our advice just after dawn this morning, as we rolled up to school. But I hope she enjoys the whole run of it. Because it is a rare treat and one to not be taken lightly.

You can check on the livestream here - depending upon the speed of your internet connection - to see how the meet’s going for ICS. Note the time difference. We’re 10 hours ahead of the North American West Coast (7 hours ahead of y’all, EST).

With a little luck, maybe Maya will even give a recap here next week. Go Eagles! Ciao.

With the colorful main gate of ICS in the background, Maya reassured me that my old pep talk (“Squish ‘em, squeeze ‘em…”) was unnecessary before departure.