The hot summer evenings in Zagreb provide the perfect setting to reflect on the Ultimate frizbi events of the last year, and to look forward to new challenges and goals in the coming year.
When I was elected president, I had three goals for Ultimate in Zagreb and Croatia: a. host a tournament b. develop Ultimate to the level where pick up games would be organized "spontaneously" c. extend Ultimate beyond Zagreb and beyond Croatia, that is, to our neighbors to the south and east. In less than a year, we have accomplished two of those three goals.
First of all, Wild Wild West was a huge success, primarily because of the hard work of our club members. The organization was excellent, the media coverage put us on the Croatian scene, and it gave many players in Zagreb to experience the excitement of a tournament. I can't wait for WWW2, and judging from emails from other teams and discussions with our club members, there are a lot of others with similar feelings. And not only did we organize a tournament, a Zagreb team won it (the second tourney in a row, don't forget Koper), and our women's team took the gold medal at Balaton...you've come a long way, baby.
Secondly, Zloæko League has signified the next level of Ultimate in Croatia. Official trainings are important to build skills, learn teamwork, and train for competition, but a big part of Ultimate (especially West Coast) is fun, and I think these kind of "pick up games" (practice your pick up lines boys and girls, we are getting exposure at Jarun) embody this aspect of the sport. We are growing as a club, constantly bringing in new members who are attracted to Ultimate for various reasons, and it is great to be able to provide different levels of training in Zagreb.
Finally, I still hope to reach out to potential Ultimate players outside of Zagreb, and possibly in Serbia, Bosnia, Montenegro, etc. The flying disc golf club in Èakovec is a great start, but when they send their first Ultimate squad to Zagreb I will open a bottle of Cham...., naaah, a bottle of šljivovica.
Although many players are relaxing on the coast or working on fitness programs, I am sure Ultimate is not far from their minds, anticipating a Fall season full of training camps (Scoops Camp 3!!!) and tournaments (CDO, Kimle). We should also be looking forward to a new club meeting and new elections (tentatively scheduled for October), to move the club forward...so think about how each one of you can contribute to Ultimate in Croatia. The grizzled veterans know how much work has gone into the club so far, and the newbies can think about how they can become part of the Mali Dim - Èiks With Disks - FDK Zagreb - Zloæko legend.
Let the discs fly!!!!!
Vjeran
Post je objavljen 30.07.2008. u 21:41 sati.