Continental Cup

First of all, it is such an amazing feeling to be in Greece again! WOW! I have missed Greece so much and it feels beautiful to be here and smell the salt of the sea, feel the beautiful air, taste the richness of the foods (fruits and vegetables have so much more flavor out here than in the US).... And my friends and family out here... WOW! How I have missed all of the above and much more! While we are soaking in all the things we have missed, we also realize and firmly believe we have the best situation of being able to work, train, and prepare at least a major part of the year in California, and then come to Greece for camps, tournaments, and to fulfill the need we have to be in touch with our Greek roots.

That being said, it is an absolute honor to be representing Greece in the Continental Cup tournament taking place here on the absolutely beautiful island of Rhodes. We are at a resort on the beach that has a heavenly view and the breeze off of the beach is euphoric!

This Continental Cup tour is a new phase in the Olympic qualification process that just started this year. It will continue through 2012 and the winner of each of the 5 continents will solidify a spot in the Olympics. It's such a neat concept and process, as it allows smaller countries to have a chance to qualify without having to travel outside of their continent as the FIVB World Tour (the original qualification process) requires. It also allows for the countries to play as a country, rather than just as separate teams out for their own wins. Two teams per country are allowed in each tournament and four countries are present at each of the several Continental Cup tournaments currently being held. This tournament includes Estonia, Romania, Cyprus, and Greece. The top 3 countries will advance to the next phase of the Continental Cup tour.

So, last night, we played against Romania. The two teams from each country played each other. We are Greece 2. Greece 1 is Maria Tsartsiani and Viki Arvaniti, who are currently ranked 13th in the world on the FIVB tour. To win as a country, we need to win 3 out of 5 matches. So, Greece 1 played Romania 2. Then Greece 2 (us) played Romania 1. Then Greece 1 played Romania 1.... Is everyone following? Heehee.... We won 3-0, but if we had lost, there would have been a fourth match (Greece 2 vs. Romania 2). If that resulted in a 2-2 record, then a golden set would be played by the chosen team (which could be any combination of players from the country) of each country to determine the winner. So, it's a very new system and it is very nice to play as a country and represent Greece as a country, following beautifully the spirit of the Olympics.

As I said, we won 3-0 versus Romania. And tomorrow night we play against Estonia (as they beat Cyprus 2-2 last night). Tomorrow night is the finals of the tournament and will be played in the same format - the goal of winning 3 out of 5 matches as a country.

I used to live in Greece for 4 years, so this is so wonderful for me to be back here, speak and hear Greek, see so many faces I haven't seen in many, many years... Wow.... It's a beautiful thing! I could go on and on! More to come.....