The first day of the Rio Olympics, August 6, was also the day of my 17th birthday. As a female epee fencer, I was also lucky enough to watch my sports event on my birthday. More importantly, my experience at the event changed my view on how watching the games can really unite strangers together and bring literal tears of joy.
I sat down in the loosely packed arena as the women’s epee fencing semi-finals began. All lights were pointed on the center stage. The crowd was a lot bigger than what I had pictured for a fencing event. Colorful flags of different countries cropped up here and there. People wore all kinds of accessories to support their teams.
"I think the sword just, like, senses the hit or something, right?" the girl sitting next to me said, "I mean, it’s electricity."
I cringed.
"Oh yeah, I guess that makes sense," another girl responded, still looking confused.
Oh no, I thought. The semi-finals just started. I can’t let them go on watching with this false information. I must save them.
"There’s a button at the end of the blade," I finally said, turning toward the two girls.
Their faces lit up and their eyes followed my words as I started explaining the basic rules. You score a point when the tip of your weapon hits your opponent hard enough to press the button down, I told them. And yes, you can hit anywhere from head to toe.
We started talking more about our lives, and they kept wishing me happy birthday. Connie Gonzalez is a Harvard graduate student from Miami, and she’s cheering for France. Dallas gal Camma Morgan is working in Los Angeles, and she’s cheering for Hungary. They never watched fencing before. They kept asking me questions, eyes full of curiosity.
"So can you trick each other?" Camma asked with a laugh.
"Oh yeah, definitely," I smirked.
I must admit, I thoroughly enjoyed explaining the sport to them. Our conversation hyped up the game even more.
The finals finally rolled around. It was between Italy and Hungary, Camma’s team. Near the end, Hungary was still down 8-11.
"Go Hungary!" Camma loyally shouted out.
"We need that," a fan behind us said to her. He was all geared up with the Hungarian flag.
"Hungary will win," she responded confidently.
The three of us inched to the edge of the plastic blue chairs, eyes glued to the two athletes shuffling back and forth. I saw Camma keep cheering louder as her team kept scoring and catching up. Soon enough, the Hungarian fencer was ahead 14-12 and only needed one more point.
Beep! Both sides lit up! The Hungarian fencer threw off her mask and ran to the end of the stage, screaming in excitement.
"AHH!" Camma jumped up from her chair and cheered at the top of her lungs. She chanted and clapped along with the Hungary supporters behind her. Their athlete just won the Olympic gold medal.
"I’m so happy," Camma said to her fellow Hungary fan, "I told you she would win."
By now, tears have welled up in her red eyes and she had a hand on her chest. I stared at her in amazement. Before today, she didn’t know a thing about fencing. Now she’s crying tears of joy for the Olympic athlete she chose to support.
Before coming to Rio, I often heard about how watching the games can really bring people together. To be honest, that just sounded like some cliché promo slogan to me. But after talking animatedly with two girls I just met, adding each other on Facebook, and cheering with a group of strangers, I now know the slogan is all too real. I couldn’t have asked for a better birthday.
Hi! My name is Emma Li and I'm a 17-year-old student at an international high school in Shanghai, China. I love journalism, fencing, and puppies. I'm at the Rio Olympics as a summer intern for Around the Rings, and I'll be publishing a blog post everyday about my experiences at the Olympics from the unique perspective of a millennial.