Author Archives: Kathryn
Olympics: women’s volleyball
How the sport works The first team to score twenty five points in three sets wins the match. This was still a preliminary round so there were no medals awarded tonight. It never fails to stun me how tall volleyball players are, so when the American and Serbian teams came on the court, I … Continue reading
Olympics: rowing
How the sport works There are two different types of stroke: sweeping (one oar per athlete) and sculling (two oars per athlete, abbreviated with an X). If there is a cox in the boat to steer and motivate the athletes, it is abbreviated with a plus sign and a minus sign without a cox. Boats … Continue reading
Olympics: men’s & women’s beach volleyball
How the sport works Teams win a set by scoring twenty one points and the first team to win two of three sets wins. There were no medals up for grabs tonight. Horse Guards Parade was a beautiful setting for the beach volleyball competition. Just outside the venue, a sand sculptor was … Continue reading
Olympics: women’s and men’s cycling time trial
How the sport works Every ninety seconds, a cyclist starts the race and rides the entire course alone. The fastest time wins. The women's time trial was twenty nine kilometers and the men's was forty four. My dad, brother, and I boarded a morning train for Hampton Court to secure a good spot along … Continue reading
Olympics: men’s 69 kilo weightlifting
How the sport works An athlete must complete two different types of lifts. Round one is the snatch, where he must lift the weight above his head in one fluid movement. The second round is the clean and jerk, where he must lift the weight first to his collarbone and then over his head. A … Continue reading
Olympics: rowing
How the sport works There are two different types of stroke: sweeping (one oar per athlete) and sculling (two oars per athlete, abbreviated with an X). If there is a cox in the boat to steer and motivate the athletes, it is abbreviated with a plus sign and a minus sign without a cox. Boats … Continue reading
Olympics: badminton
How the sport works In singles badminton, the first athlete to reach twenty one points wins that particular game. A player needs to win two games to win the overall match. The only difference in doubles is that there are two players per team. This was early in the preliminary round so there … Continue reading
Olympics: men’s cycling road race
How the sport works Between one to five cyclists represent their country and ride two hundred fifty kilometers. The first cyclist to cross the finish line wins. As usual, I arrived bright and early with my family to the Mall to get the best seats possible. We had reserved tickets but the … Continue reading
Oxford
I love visiting my friends in Oxford and this trip I had some time for a quick wander around town. Punting is a great Oxford tradition. The punter stands on the flat part of the boat and uses a long pole to steer. A lot easier said than done! You have to twist the … Continue reading
Luxembourg
I’ve heard Luxembourg described as a fairy tale city and it’s not hard to see why. With castles, ruins, and lots of nature, the capital of this small country is gorgeous. I spent most of my two sunny days there walking for miles. I popped in to a small museum that had a great … Continue reading