And the Flag Football World Championship Team is . . .

THAILAND!!!!! In a down to the wire finish, the flag football team from Thailand (Siri & Sup should be proud) narrowly defeated the US team by a score of (hmm I forget). It was a great game by the two teams that really set themselves apart from the rest of the 10 team field. In the end, Thailand's team speed and athleticism was too much for the Miami-based USA team. The highlight of the game was a one handed catch for a touchdown by one of the Thailand as he streaked down the sideline for the opening score of the game. It should've been on Sportcenter's top plays! It was that good. However, congratulations to all teams for a great tournament!

Overall the Flag Football World Championships was an outstanding event. Chad Lewis, most recently of the Philadelphia Eagles, came out to the event as a special liaison from the NFL. Chad is fluent in Mandarin after having completed his Mormon mission in Taiwan many years ago. NFL representatives from throughout the world also accompanied their teams to the event and it was great meeting them.


Heading into last Thursday, I had never seen the NFL's flag football league so I didn't know what to expect from the boys & girls ages 11-14 who came to Beijing from ten countries (China, USA, Canada, Thailand, South Korea, France, Mexico, Spain, Germany, Italy). In the end, it was a great event that truly showed how special sports is in its ability to bring people together. I know that sounds a bit cliche, but it's true because these kids showed so much passion, intensity, and courage while simultaneously displaying the highest levels of sportsmanship imaginable. Time and again kids would receive bumps and bruises and they all shook off the pain and bounced right back up. They really impressed me throughout the tournament.

Of the ten teams, Germany was my favorite to watch. Although they weren't the best team on the field, the antics of their coaches (three 16 year old teenagers) and players were very amusing. The continually yelled and screamed really loud (sometimes good, sometimes bad) but always came together as a team. They also had the tallest and shortest players in the tournament. The shortest was a great blitzer and I really felt for him whenever he would go down due to injury. But, like others, he bounced right back up.