Costa Rica @ MindSay 
tammy
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7493000.stm <--to leave a comment for yourself & see the video
Nery Brenes struggled for years to get the funding to race professionally
The BBC's Against the Odds series profiles athletes heading to the Olympics despite huge obstacles.
In Costa Rica, Claire Marshall met a young sprinter from a port town consumed by gang violence.
Nery Brenes has the Olympic hopes of a nation resting on his shoulders, and he is just 22 years old.
In August, he will represent Costa Rica in the 400 metres in Beijing.
According to his coach, Walter Salazar, he's the best athlete ever to have come from the country.
Nery was born in the impoverished port town of Limon, on Costa Rica's Caribbean coast.
 | Nery Brenes Ranked between 12 and 15 in the world Best time: 45.01 in 2007 (World record 43.18) In action: 18th August, Olympic 400m Round 1 |
Walking beneath the huge trees of Limon's tattered central square, he told the BBC: "Right now this town is going through a difficult time.
"There are a lot of deaths. Young kids killing young kids. There is a lot of drugs. So I'm just trying to be like someone that they can see improving life.
"What's that Liverpool song - 'You'll never walk alone?' I want kids to feel that from me - that they have someone who can be their support."
Long road to success
Nery struggled for years to get the funding to race professionally.
 Nery struggled for years to get the funding to make the best of his talent |
The government finally stepped in to give him a grant, and now he has several private sponsors.
"It's so hard here. To get money, you need to be a superstar or something", he said.
When Nery came fourth in the World Indoor Championships in Valencia in March this year, he gave his $8,000 prize money to deprived families from Limon.
"Along with being world champion, and to help my family, my dream is to build a school here for poor children", he said.
'He ran everywhere'
Laughter spills out from the single story house in a humble suburb of Limon as Nery play wrestles with one of his young cousins.
| |  When people got to know where I practised; where I'm from, they were like, 'He's got talent'. I was like the new kid on the block  |
Maidela looks at her son with intense pride, as her crochet needles move quickly in her hands.
"He learned to run quickly. He ran everywhere; inside, outside, in the street. My mother always says leave him - don't stop him, don't discourage him - leave him and stand aside - even if you're left behind.
"Now, he's an idol for the kids here".
Nery kisses his mother softly on the cheek. He says that he calls her three times a day.
"We are a united family", he says. "That's why things are always going right and things are always coming through."
Run-down athletics track
Nery now trains full time in the Costa Rican capital, San Jose.
 Good memories: Nery's old running track is now overgrown |
He returns to visit the run-down sports centre in Limon where he trained for 9 years.
It is difficult to see where the running track is; it is covered in grass and rocks, and some barefoot children are playing football at one end.
Walking slowly around it, he murmurs that the place holds good memories for him.
"This is where I first started practising when I was 12-years-old. It was so hard. I had a lot of injuries. But then I went to Osaka last year and I ran 45.01 and people were like, 'Who is this guy?'
"When people got to know where I practised; where I'm from, they were like, 'He's got talent'. I was like the new kid on the block."
His coach, Walter Salazar, says that Nery is shorter and lighter than most 400m runners but says he has "one of the fastest finishing kicks in the world".
Gruelling sprint regime
Since he spotted his talent five years ago, Walter has taken charge of Nery's training programme.
 Costa Rica suffered recent flooding after a tropical storm |
With his Olympic test just around the corner, three of these sessions are a gruelling series of 12 100 metre sprints, with a break of less than two minutes between each one.
Nery sears down his final 100 metre sprint in 10.4 seconds. His average time is about 11.4 seconds.
His chest heaves to suck in air, and he pours water over the back of his head as he squats down on the track.
Walter places his hand on his neck to check his pulse.
He is pleased. "That's the best training session we've had", he said. "Well done. Very consistent. That's what we're looking for."
As for how well Nery can expect to do in the Olympics, Walter refuses to speculate.
He says: "He's in very good shape. We hope for the best, but you know, anything can happen. We don't think too much about the future, just about today, to have him free from injury and with motivation and concentration."
Nery is clear about his own personal goal.
"I don't think, I AM going to be World Champion. I'm going to work hard for that. I know it's a long road... But I'm going to come through."
Here are a selection of your comments on this story:
Unlike several recent examples, including some high profile ones from my own country (weightlifting-swimming), this guy stands out as an example of what the Olympic spirit should inspire athletes to behave like and aim for..better their lives through fair excellence in sport..I wish him (already a winner) every success in the Games
George Triantos, Athens Greece
This is what the Olympics is all about, it's not the runners with a team of trainers, agents and marketing team and corporate sponsors behind them that the average people are routing for or necessarily want to see. It stories like this, an impoverish runner with one big dream, that makes the Olympics what it is.
Jeffrey Williams, London
As a person from a poor, violence-prone tropical country, I wish Nery all the best. He reminds me of our world-famous cricketers who grow up playing with makeshift bats and tape balls on rocky paths and beaches.
Anthony, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Its inspiring to see a 22 year old so into empowering the children in his home town. He's heart has won me over considering he gave all his winnings to a charity just shows what kind of person he is, when you consider how many generations live in one house it would have been easier for him to help only his own family. I wish him all the best in his career
Eric Anunda, Aberdeen
Stories like this are very humbling to us in wealthy countries where people don't need to struggle against the odds. I wish Nery all the very best......may you win!
Katie Sabry, limassol , cyprus
He is already a champion! What a great person with such a big heart. I hope he wins a medal at the Olympics. Go Nery Brenes!!!
Tom Tong, Santa Cruz, CA USA
This is a true inspiring story, he is a success, once upon a time Arthur Ashe said "From what we get, we can make a living; what we give, however, makes a life"... This guy knows what to overcome the odd means, and money does not mean nothing to him. He is true success. God bless him and hope he inspires more under-privileged kids! give them hope
Stella, Minnesota, USA
Great story. As a keen athletics follower, I can only wish Nery well in Beijing. He deserves full support in Costa Rica (and from elsewhere). I know Puerto Limon well and to come from there to run the times he has done is absolutely remarkable. May his dedication and his dreams be rewarded.
John Chapman, Sénas, France (currently in Mexico D.F)
I would like for this young man to know he has shown great ambtion, spirit and a will to win, to survive hardship. He should come to London, all over England. He should be paid to tell his story to teenager's in school and inner cities. Manchester, Liverpool and London need a beacon of hope.
Rudolph Jones, London, Enfield
Chamo, felicitaciones y los mejores deseos desde Trinidad y Tobago. Corre como el viento, y Dios te bendiga. (Man, congratulations and best wishes from Trinidad and Tobago. Run like the wind, and God bless you!)
Austin Agho, Trinidad and Tobago
Good Luck, keep working hard, anything you set out to do you can accomplish. I enjoyed reading your story! I'm glad you are close to your Mother and family. If my son were still living he would also be 22 years old. My prayers and heart go out to you and your family that you will accomplish your goals and dreams. Never give up!
Linda, USA
Hey, did I forget to tell you I ate a fried scorpion the other day? Well, I did and it tasted like a potato chip. I was having dinner with my students and, although I was totally freaked out (I grew up in a house full of little non-deadly scorpions and I fear and loathe them.), their encouragement bolstered my nerves. I popped it in and... seriously, like a potato chip.
Anyway, that wasn't supposed to be the point of this post. I wanted to talk about a movie I just watched, Two Brothers (called Two Tigers in Chinese). If you haven't seen it, it should be available on DVD. Watch it. Do you remember the movie The Bear? I remember seeing that movie in the theater. It was incredibly moving. Two hours of the life of a bear - "bear-ly" any human acting. (haha). Still, the emotions and motives of the bear were clearly visible and anyone who did not empathize with that giant beast and little cubs probably needs to watch it again. Two Brothers is like that. The tigers are actors, too. I don't want to give too much plot away, but when they meet again after all that time and recognize each other - I bawled!!
The movie was filmed around Angkor Wat in Cambodia. In fact, the temples of the Wat complex feature prominently. The temples and landscape are stunning, and other than the obvious addition of extra plants and vines inside the temples, that is how they look. (Add in a few hundred package tourists posing in front of everything!) Warning, watching this movie will make you want to visit. And why not? South-east Asia is fast becoming my favorite place and I'd love to go back to Cambodia. We might be in Vietnam soon...
And what are the snakes I refer to in the title? In the opening scene of the movie, a close up is made of a particularly vile looking snake. Seeing that snake instantly catapulted me back to Monteverde, Costa Rica. Years ago, the DH and I took a weekend trip to the cloud forest and jungles there. (Extremely beautiful, supposed to be full of amazing wildlife. Unfortunately, we clomped through the jungle a bit too loudly and saw nothing! In fact, the highlight of the trip was when we both fell asleep, in the shade of a tree, waiting for the bus back to San Jose, and woke up an hour later only to find the sun had moved slightly and the right sides of our faces had turned bright red!)
One of the features of Monteverde is a small serpentarium - a reptile house with examples of all the slimy, creepy fauna that inhabit the nearby jungle. We spent a good hour or two going through, looking at all the snakes, spiders and lizards. When we reached the Fir de Lance, one of the deadliest snakes in Costa Rica, we couldn't see the snake. We kept looking and looking, with our faces right up against the glass. Oh well, we thought, he is pretty hidden in that tree branch. That is when we realized that not only was there no padlock on the cage, like many of the other cages, but the whole locking mechanism was wide open.
I cannot confirm that the Fir de Lance was on the loose...nor could I deny it. Once this realization dawned on us, we got the hell out of there. Looks like I am not the only one. When searching google for the name of the snake, I found this: scroll down to the picture of the boulders and read.
Serpentarium in Monteverde - I'd think twice. Cuddly, feel-good movie about two tiger cubs in Cambodia - a better choice!
I also learned about the powerful heartache of leaving behind dear ones. When you study abroad you miss your home but when you return home you miss the family that you established while in your host country. There are people who I grew to love while abroad who I will never see again. And there is not really anybody to talk about this with because I don’t want to be that girl who starts every conversation with “And one time in Costa Rica…” Jokes aren’t as funny and stories aren’t as meaningful to those who don’t share your experience. So instead my memories live inside me and in the words and images of this blog. Though my Costa Rica experience will probably not color the rest of my life it emerges as smiles in my daydreams and lessons learned expressed through my choices.
To quote my study abroad advisor Brian Souders, “When you get back from studying abroad people want to hear 3 words: It was great!” My profs in CR even recommended coming up with a 30 second speal to share. It’s hard to do! I often find myself tongue tied trying to explain it all.
As far as reverse culture shock goes I had three big surprises. I forgot how clean the US is! The city streets in Washington D.C., New York, and Baltimore have hardly any trash compared to Costa Rica and Nicaragua. In addition the asphalt is so smooth and well maintained. At first DC didn’t look real because the wide flat streets were perfect; I can imagine how excited someone flying into Reagan or Dulles for the first time from another country must feel. As an American I tend to be very critical but we are so lucky for our civil liberties and access to resources.
Another shock, which I was expecting was the materialism and wastefulness of our culture. I visited my friends as they were moving out at the end of the year and we found computers, lazy boy chairs, desks, wrapped cigars, new stuffed animals with labels, and other perfectly good items in the dumpster. College students should be smart enough to realize their connection to the earth and that it is better to reuse or give something away than send it to sit in a landfill. Needless to say I kept many nice items from dumpster diving. After move out, I stayed with my boyfriend and his family at the beach and I was shocked at the amount of packaging and how much food was wasted.
My third big surprise was the diversity of the United States. Besides the Caribbean, I had not really seen any black people in CR. It’s so cool that in any random 7-11 on the East Coast you are likely to find people who are Catholic, Jewish, Pacific Islanders, Irish, African American, Indian…this list goes on. I love UMBC because of its student body’s diversity in background, thought, and color.
Something that has kept me from pining away for Costa Rica is keeping busy. Like I promised I spent time in Gettysburg with my brother and Grandma. I traveled to New York to get ideas for my Costa Rica photography exhibit in September. Most weekends I still headed out to the beach; Sandy Point State Park, Flag Ponds, Ocean City, Cape Henelopen and more. I have also gone salsa and swing dancing. Life is not as exotic now but it still deserves to be lived with full zest. I got an REU grant to study the effectiveness of stream restoration on reducing Nitrogen inputs into the Cheasapeake Bay thus reducing Dead Zones. And I have been hard at work organizing for the next year as president of UMBC’s Students for Environmental Awareness. Being abroad and seeing the rainforests and their inhabitants has increased my commitment to doing my part to help protect our planet.
I emphatically recommend studying abroad to anyone who has the chance because it helps broaden your perspective so that you understand a little bit more of the home you share with Earth’s ~6.5 billion other citizens. Plus you’ll have good stories for when you grow old. :)
I started packing my suitcases on Sunday. That’s 8 days before departure time. Now I have less than a week. I bet you couldn’t guess that I have been counting down the days. Since the roster list for the School for Field Studies participants went out, I have been getting enthusiastic emails from my soon-to-be classmates. Those who do have “facebook” look awesome. My favorite profile was Meredith’s because she’s holding an ity bity baby snapping turtle. Though big snappers scare me, that one is so cute! It will be really refreshing to be surrounded by people who love to explore under rocks, listen to bird calls, name tree species, and play with bugs. I’ve been living in a state of nervous anticipation the past couple weeks. Hopefully, it will fade away when I finally get there (Taylor in Tokyo said hers did – Check out her story at littleladyluck .) To feel a little bit like I’m already there I decided to try out the 100% biodegradable soap from Trader Joes that I’ll be using for the next semester. It doesn’t lather quite as well as my usual Herbal Essence and my hair is left a little tangled. But it smells amazing! The shampoo/conditioner/body wash is called “Refresh.” You’ll laugh when you hear the ingredients list: orange, grapefruit, tangerine, and lemon peel, as well as Chamomile, Vitamin B-5, sage, yarrow, and jojoba oil. Who needs multivitamins when you have cosmetics! The 100% biodegradable pear soap is made with olive oil, aloe vera, and Vitamins A and E. Now I smell like a fruit salad. Mmmmm…fruit salad. I think I’m now hooked on biodegradable cosmetics! Despite being an educated college student, I’m seriously tempted to taste them. Then a horrible thought crosses my mind; if I smell like a fruit salad, there may be some other species who consider me an all you can eat buffet! Will the Costa Rican insects be more attracted to the smell of sweet fruit or to the smell of grungy college students? I’m sure that I’ll be able to answer this question by May.
The current major question is how to fit everything into two suitcases and a carry-on bag? My hip waders are rather large, as is my scuba gear. And now I have a solar water heater too. (Thank you, Karin, for reading my blog and getting me one as a going away present!) Maybe I should have my scuba gear mailed down or I could have my parents bring it during spring break. I’m so excited that they may be coming down to see me. Other than Canada, they haven’t left the country since before I was born. They are the wonderful kind of parents who work to give everything to their kids instead of thinking about themselves. I love you, Mom and Dad!
My poor mother has even put up with the mess I’ve made with all my gear that I have had laying around the house for weeks. Check out my messy room and major packing obstacle in the photo. I guess Fat Willy doesn’t want me to leave or he wants to come with me. I don’t think that the toucans and macaws would appreciate it though!
Don't have time to make proper entries or entries like I'd like at the moment, just so busy. Could have throttled a couple of the waiters last night as they pissed me off to no end, but Jenny was at work so that was good. She is nice to me. Sounds nieve.
Predictions today:
Ukraine (3) v Tunisia (0)
Spain (3) v Saudi Arabia (0)
Switzerland (1) v South Korea (2)
Toga (1) v France (1)
And I think someone is spiking my diet drinks with sugar if I find out who I'll be having some strong words with them.
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