Italy, Qatar and...Berlin!

Although the work we do here at In the Arena is domestic (ie: our programs run in the 50 United States and address the under-served children therein), our athletes travel more frequently than Lewis and Clark. To wit: this past week saw two Arena Athletes journey overseas for competitions in Italy and Qatar.

Matt Chisam (pictured below at the 2008 US Olympic Trials in Eugene, OR) traveled to Milan to compete in a Multistars event. Although Matt had to bring all of his charm to bear on the airline personnel to get his poles to and from Italy in an affordable manner (barely), the trip was a great success and you can read about it on his blog.


Mike Hazle also ventured quite a ways from home for the thrill of a top-notch athletic competition. He traveled to Doha, Qatar for the second time in as many years to contest an IAAF Grand Prix meet --and one chocked full of talent at that. Mike threw his best season opener ever in the javelin and finished sixth in a field he says was worthy of an Olympic final. He, too, has blogged about his experience in typical Mike fashion: full of candor, humor and interesting nativist tidbits. As you can see from the photo below, Mike is all about getting a feel for the culture of the loci he visits.


And finally, it's with great pleasure that I can announce the appointment of Arena Athlete Zoila Gomez to the US World Championships Team in the marathon. She and a few of her compatriots, including Kara Goucher, will travel to Berlin in the fall to test their mettle against the world's best at that grueling distance. This will be the second time Zoila --the alternate for the 2008 US Olympic Marathon Team --dons the USA uniform. To read an interview with Zoila and her US teammates, click here.


Meanwhile, as the above athletes and their colleagues on the Arena Roster continue to pursue excellence in the civic and athletic arenas, the little one below is working out daily in the hopes of some day being able to join their ranks. While she's not yet running --or even walking --she's really good at leg lifts and arm circles. Onwards and upwards, folks.