{"id":960,"date":"2018-06-24T13:32:13","date_gmt":"2018-06-24T13:32:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bringitusa.com\/live\/?p=960"},"modified":"2018-06-28T19:14:43","modified_gmt":"2018-06-28T19:14:43","slug":"binh-dien-2018-vietnam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bringitusa.com\/live\/binh-dien-2018-vietnam\/","title":{"rendered":"BIP USA Team Competes in Vietnam"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Earlier this spring BIP was invited to enter a team into the 12th annual Binh Dien Tournament in Vietnam in May. The level is quite high, loaded with some top clubs from around Asia; China,\u00a0Kazakhstan, Thailand, and Vietnam for this year. No American team had even been involved. As with many things in Asia, this was a last-minute effort, and we were lucky to find 11 athletes\u00a0able and willing to participate, most committing and booking tickets just weeks prior to the event. The trip had everyone meeting in Saigon (formerly Ho Chi Minh City) and then flying to Da\u00a0Nang together after a day or two of getting used to the new time zone.\u00a0<\/span>The following is a journal from Anna Church, a seasoned BIP-All-Star who just wrapped up a season playing professionally in Germany. <\/span><\/p>\n

While my thanks here are aimed at Anna for taking the time to do\u00a0this (and well) I would be remiss if I didn\u2019t include thanks to ALL the girls and staff for stepping up and making this happen with almost no notice. I\u2019m beyond impressed, but even more\u00a0jealous that I\u2019m not there enjoying the ride with this crew! –\u00a0<\/span>Tim Kelly<\/span><\/p>\n

The first 72 hours in Vietnam<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

May 9, 2018 –\u00a0After about two days of travel for most of us, and at least 20+ hours on planes and in\u00a0airports, we FINALLY arrived in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam! Fun fact about four of us on\u00a0the team: we are all from the Kansas City area! I played in high school at Bishop\u00a0Miege with Jordan Tucker and Allison Mayfield is also a University of Kansas alumni\u00a0(my alma mater). Allison and Carlyle Nusbaum are also alumni of St. Thomas\u00a0Aquinas High School (though a couple years apart) in the Kansas City area.\u00a0Fighting the urge to sleep after lunch at the hotel, we ventured out into the city.<\/span><\/p>\n

Immediately, we nearly got run over by the millions of scooters that zip around Ho\u00a0Chi Minh. Scooters are the preferred mode of transport for locals. They toss on some\u00a0layers to protect them from the sun, a face mask for fumes (I think), and head to\u00a0their next location. Traffic laws and regulations seem to be at a minimum in this city\u00a0of roughly 8.6 million. Scooters merge and dart around cars and trucks. It feels like\u00a0stoplights are more of a suggestion than rule and cross walks are a free-for-all.\u00a0Thanks to Hailey Murray, we safely crossed our first street and headed to the Saigon\u00a0Notre-Dame Basilica and Central Post Office. <\/span><\/p>\n

We learned that both these beautiful\u00a0buildings were built back when Vietnam was a French colony. The French brought\u00a0their ideas of architecture and building techniques to the country and influenced\u00a0these and many other buildings. A couple of souvenir purchases later, the group\u00a0headed to Ho Chi Minh City Hall (another impressive piece of colonial architecture).\u00a0Down the main walking area, we went to an Ao Dai Exhibition to learn about the\u00a0traditional dresses that were being custom made for us to wear in the tournament\u00a0opening ceremonies. <\/span><\/p>\n

Following the stunning exhibition, we went to our first large\u00a0market, the Ben Thanh Market. Some of us worked on our bartering skills, some just\u00a0paid, but the biggest wins were for Jordan and Carlyle who bought Yeezy\u2019s and Vans\u00a0at a massive discount. Dinner back at the hotel had me literally falling asleep at the\u00a0table. We all called it an early night and knocked out.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"May 10, 2018<\/strong> – The morning was ours to go where we pleased. Naturally, I want to see and do as\u00a0much as possible in a new place. My roommate, Rachel Ritchie, and I grabbed\u00a0breakfast (tried and loved passion fruit) and ventured out for a walk. We met up\u00a0with Jordan and Maggie Speaks at the War Remnants Museum. The museum was a\u00a0very sobering and informative trip. We began by exploring old tanks and helicopters left behind by the US, then went into an area that described the horrendous\u00a0situation for prisoners, and last took a look at some of the consequences and politics\u00a0behind the war. It was fascinating to see the history that we have been taught from a\u00a0different perspective.\u00a0After the museum, we tried traditional Vietnamese coffee on ice. It\u2019s super strong\u00a0but sweet since they mix in condensed milk. Its DELICIOUS! Rachel and I are coffee\u00a0<\/span>fanatics and luckily there\u2019s no shortage of shops.\u00a0Julia Brown had gotten stuck in China on her connecting flight the day before (I can\u2019t\u00a0even imagine the stress!). We were praying it all worked out so she could meet us at\u00a0the Ho Chi Minh airport to head to Da Nang. Just as we were checking our bags, she\u00a0showed up, and we hopped on our flight.\u00a0As soon as we picked up our bags, there were several men from the tournament\u00a0<\/span>waiting for us. <\/span>They took some video and loaded us into a bus to Tam Ky. We have\u00a0the opportunity to be the first team representing the US to ever play in Vietnam. We\u00a0will be competing in the 12th\u00a0annual VTV9 Binh Dien Cup hosted in Tam Ky, Quang\u00a0Nam Province, Vietnam. Everyone here is so supportive and excited to have us.\u00a0One bus ride through the mountains later, we dropped our bags and went straight to\u00a0training. <\/span><\/p>\n

The first training was expectedly shaky, but what we weren\u2019t expecting the\u00a0lack of air conditioning. Every dive on the floor left a puddle behind to be wiped up.\u00a0Despite the jet lag and excessive sweat, we started to connect as a team. Directly\u00a0following our first training, and absolutely drenched in sweat, we tried on our very\u00a0own cusom Ao Dai. We had sent measurements, but tweaks were very necessary.\u00a0From impossible zippers to feeling like our broad shoulders would tear the fragile\u00a0silk, it was a good thing that adjustments were being made. After soaking our Ao\u00a0Dais in sweat, we came back to the hotel, ate more Pho, and called it a night.<\/span><\/p>\n

May 11, 2018<\/strong> –\u00a0Today, Rachel and I woke up and took a walk to find our lifeblood: coffee.\u00a0Everywhere we went, we were greeted by with smiles and warm \u201chellos\u201d. The\u00a0Vietnamese people are truly some of the kindest and most welcoming people. In the\u00a0afternoon, we had our second practice. As we start to connect on the court, its\u00a0exciting to see how we will measure up. Somehow this practice was even sweatier\u00a0than the first. But thank God, no dress fittings after.\u00a0A pool recovery session helped heal our tired bodies and we met up for the\u00a0tournament\u2019s opening dinner. Sitting with the other teams and sponsors, we looked\u00a0onto a stage where the tournament coordinators, head honchos, and sponsors were\u00a0presented. We received our finalized Ao Dais, lanterns to light in Hoi An, and\u00a0adorable stuffed water buffalos. While we ate, we were treated to elaborate\u00a0<\/span>performances featuring glittering costumes and impressive vocals. As a team, we\u00a0decided it was time to embrace the karaoke culture and performed a heartfelt\u00a0rendition of Marvin Gaye\u2019s \u201cAin\u2019t No Mountain High\u201d. Jordan and Maggie absolutely\u00a0killed the leads while the rest of us belted it out and danced our support from the\u00a0background.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"So far, it\u2019s been a complete whirlwind in the best way. From volleyball, to trying new\u00a0foods, to meeting some incredible people, it\u2019s going to be a trip to remember. Its my\u00a0first trip to Asia and I\u2019m constantly in awe at the things around me! My favorite\u00a0moments have been seeing and playing with Jordan for the first time in years, trying\u00a0all types of new foods (especially passion fruit and Vietnamese coffee!), and\u00a0introducing ourselves at the opening dinner via song and dance. Next up is a couple\u00a0more training sessions, opening ceremonies, and our first match. Our pool includes\u00a0Almaty (Kazakhstan), Jiansu (China), and Ngan hang cong thuong (Vietnam). Here\u00a0we go!<\/span><\/p>\n

May 12th –\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>We’re starting to get adjusted and get into a rhythm. Our morning started with a training session at 8:30, followed by an afternoon nap, a 2:30 training session, and then preparations for the opening ceremony. We had\u00a0received our final Ao Dai the night before, and they were fitting much better than our post-training-try-on-session. With shoes and a headpiece to match, we met in the lobby. Everyone looked stunning in the flattering\u00a0traditional dress.\u00a0The biggest concern about opening ceremony was the level of sweat that might show through our Ao Dai. The stadium was packed with spectators for the pre and post ceremony matches (we didn\u2019t play either). Fans\u00a0were on full blast, but it only helped so much. Photographers and other admirers all wanted a picture with the tall American team. Somehow we\u2019re the exotic team!<\/span><\/p>\n

The ceremony started out with some impressive dancers that in head to toe light up suits. The stadium got pitch black and they performed their red light vs blue light routine complete with a lighted \u201cvolleyball\u201d on a\u00a0string. Next was a woman who literally rode in on a boat surrounded by smoke. Opening ceremonies were no joke. She sang and performed with a group of back up dancers. Last but not least was a tall, beautiful\u00a0woman rocking a yellow Ao Dai and singing a patriotic Vietnam song. After all the performances, it was our turn to be introduced.<\/span><\/p>\n

We lined up shortest to tallest, so naturally I was in front and Sareea Freeman brought up the back. We took a full lap, smiling and waving, before lining up to stand still for speeches. The heads of the tournament made\u00a0remarks to the crowd and cameras about the significance of the tournament while we tried to hide the sweat dripping down our brows. From discreetly fanning ourselves to obviously doing so, it was a pretty tough 25\u00a0minutes. After watching the video again, I was happy to see we weren\u2019t the only team struggling with the heat. Speaking of struggling with the heat, apparently one of the flag bearers near to us completely fainted!\u00a0Since I was in the front I didn\u2019t see it happen, but was told about it after. The flag bearers were all pretty young men, poor kid. Not to worry though, he was a ball-boy the following day and seemed fine.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"
Opening Ceremonies<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The opening ceremony was a surreal experience despite the heat. Being introduced in a traditional Ao Dai and representing the United States via BIP in an international tournament in Vietnam is an opportunity I never\u00a0imagined I would have. Sweat dripping off of me and all, I could only think about how grateful I was to be in that moment in time with some incredible teammates and coaches.<\/span><\/p>\n

May 13th<\/strong> –\u00a0GAME DAY! Finally! vs. Vietnam Club\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I woke up early with a ton of energy to spare. So I got up and called my mom and wished her a happy Mother\u2019s Day (6:15am for me was 6:15pm the previous day at home). She helped me calm my nervous energy for\u00a0the match and I headed to breakfast with the team. First we had serve and pass in the morning then a whole stupid afternoon of sitting, napping, eating and just waiting for the match. Patience is a virtue right? Fast forward to getting to put on the USA jersey: it definitely didn\u2019t help with my extra energy. Somehow I even got my own number (#1)! I leaned back on an old track warm-up track technique and\u00a0jogged it out before warm ups. Feeling calm and focused, now all I had to do was wait for warm ups before the match started at last.<\/span><\/p>\n

The match itself was a little up and down. It began with us up 16-8 and then dropping that lead to lose the first set. We got it together after that and took the next 3 sets 25-21, 25-20, and 25-21. It\u00a0was far from perfect, but a good step in the right direction for our team. And always great to get a win!<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"May 14th –\u00a0<\/span><\/strong>Very chill, this was one of the least eventful days we\u2019ve had: morning training, pool, afternoon training, hang, dinner, then practiced our talent show dance. To explain the dance, on May 18th there is apparently some sort of talent competition taking place between the teams. We are unsure of the format, but we decided to do a choreographed dance.\u00a0Hailey Murray is a superstar and took charge. She planned a fairly simple dance to Beyonce\u2019s \u201cFormation\u201d that even us uncoordinated ones can handle (with lots of practice). Stay tuned to hear\u00a0how it goes!<\/span><\/p>\n

Depending on where you are in the hotel, there is air conditioning. We practiced on the third floor, sans-conditioning. One of the things that continues to surprise me throughout this trip is how much I sweat. I’ve never been a multiple-shirt-for-practice player or even close to the sweatiest person on the court. But here, I am constantly drenched. I bring two shirts to practice and at least one towel to dry off during breaks or to use on the floor after I dive. Even practicing our fairly low key dance on the third floor, I needed a cold shower after. We were also given a case of water for each room because our staff already knew the sweat situation. Its obviously incredibly important to constantly drink water when you’re losing buckets at a time.<\/p>\n

\"\"May 15th –\u00a0Game day number two! <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

This time, an extra early morning practice: 7:30 instead of 8:30. After training, I did some work at my favorite spot in the hotel: the 20th floor. Not only is the wifi\u00a0much better up here, but there\u2019s a bar that can supply all my coffee needs and a killer view.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"In the second match versus Almaty (Kazakhstan), we really came together and executed as a team. Their style of play was much more similar to what we are used to, but our servers also really\u00a0did a fantastic job. We were connecting at all levels in every skill. It was really fun to be apart of. Serve receive, defense, blocking, setting, hitting; all cylinders were firing. We won the match\u00a03-0 and the final set was a blowout at 25-10. We are officially in the semi-finals on the 19th! It was another great day.<\/span><\/p>\n

Watch the full match below.<\/p>\n