Day two Women and Day one Freestyle Men

My appoligies for not getting to post last night...
It was an emotional evening, and by the time I got back to the village I found my gas tank on absolute empty.
Obviously to summarize the our final three ladies performance is hard to do. I love them to death and am always proud of how they carry themselves and individuals. There were some very good moments yesterday (Buydens win over Nigeria really stands out). Yet I dont think any of the three are really satisfied with at least one of their matches in the tournament. Bottom line we walked into a rocking stadium and the Indian Girls capitalized on that momentum. We didnt quite do the little things that has really stood us out as a team. Break down our opponents body positioning, make solid adjustments to counter attacks off of their attacks. Just a few little things but they can make all big difference.
India really did a good job in preparing for this and too their teams credit they are competing with heart and intensity that we have not seen. The national pride behind the event has been wonderful to see. The fans at the stadium have been knowledgable and amazing. They cheer after almost every good scamble and appreciate good wrestling. They have even chanted "Ca-na-da, Ca-na-da" on more than one occasion.
This really was not the focus of our season and I know a lot of our athletes put in a great amount of energy and training to try and peak and perform at the Worlds. The extension of this years season has been a challenge mentally for sure. This has been a very neat experience though, and I hope in the end our whole team remembers and cherishes this whole adventure. I know I will!
At 51kg Jessie Bondy (MacDonald) Lost to India in three rounds, defeated England and South africa in dominant fashion to win the bronze.
At 59kg Tonya beat two opponents i9ncluding the Nigerian. (Before being caught and pinned in the first round by the Indian in the finals)
At 67 kg Megan Buydens defeated current world bronze medalist to open the tournament! a great three round decision that was a true foccussed effort start to finish. She then beat australia handily to reach the finals. In the Gold medal match the indian remanded in a very tight position and megan had difficulty generating offense. her opponent capiatlized in each round as megan came out of position in an attempt to create action. Still it was a good event for Megan and I am glad that she was able to get this opportunity and get this great experience.

Many of our girls left to see the Taj Mahal today set up by the organizing committee on a train, which they were very excited about.
For Coach Calder and I it was back to Work!!! Three men wrestling today and four more weighing in...
This morning was a good effort by our men!
60 kg -Jamie Mancini won two matches this morning against Nigeria, and Scotland and has reached another final (he will face Dutt of India who is a tremendous fan favorite here)
74 kg -Evan Mac had a bye, then beat Australia (The Aussie is an import and had defeated Nigeria), in his semi he lost a hard fought match vs India. He will have two matches now to wrestle back for a bronze. (Starting with Britain).
96 kg -Corey Jarvis ripped both of his opponents this morning enroute to the gold medal match. He teched Pakistan, and pinned Australia in the semis. He will not face india in the finals... Coming into the Competition the Indian media had predicted 7 gold medals in freestyle. Yet the British athlete defeated the Indian to start the tournament at 96kg, he then lost in three rounds to the nigerian. That is who Corey will face in the finals.
I hope the games coverage is good back home... There seem to be lots of media driven stories...
Some of our athletes have had mild symptoms of stomach discomfort (yet nothing major, knock on wood). We are very accustom to travelling and competing in some challenging places so dont worry too much about that stuff. Our team is being well looked after.
For me I am going to try and grab a bite, grab a quick work out, get some lossenges for my diminishing voice! And... oh yah sit by the pool!!!
Wish us luck this evening!