The Day After I Play Broomball Against the Finns

I knew I was going to be sore - but today I felt it in my arms rather than my legs. But the game itself- priceless! I had heard about the broomball games hosted by the German Embassy, but last night I was actually there - suited up in hockey gear minus the skates and running across a frozen- over tennis court.

They Call Us...
I was one of the six women representing America as the "Frozen Assets" against the Finnish team "Finnladies." They were the one team that the Frozen Assets had beaten in the weeks prior to my arrival. Including our team from the American Embassy, there were a total of six teams in the women's league, each fielded from a different country's embassy here in Moscow: Austrailia, Finland, and Germany being the three that I remember. The German Embassy hosts all broomball games (those from the men's, women's and Marines's league) on their two tennis courts, which they cover in ice and surround with snow. Yesterday the temperature had been fluctuating around zero, so most of Moscow was either melting or freezing. Upon our arrival we found the courts fairly rough and not slick at all, which meant sliding would be more difficult and running mandatory.

Broom-WHAT?
Broomball is a sport that considers winter its mate and the hospital its mistress. Think of it as hockey without skates and a small ball instead of a puck, or "field hockey on ice." I had played broomball before - with just a helmet provided as protection - on the hallowed ice of Yost Arena near or close to midnight during intramural co-ed games. The game was challenging but fun - you slid around the ice off balance, trying to use a stick with a small triangle of plastic at the end (the "broom") to swat a ball smaller than a baseball into a two-foot high pee-wee hockey/soccer goal. At U of M, when a girl on the co-ed team scored the goal, it was two points to the one given the team if a guy scored. I remembered the guys were always faster and rougher on the ice than the girls on the team, and the girls were sent down to the other teams goal to await a pass that almost never came. No amount of shouting "I'm open! I'M OPEN!" would make those guys relinquish that ball if they thought they had even the slightest chance to score - which they almost always did. Anyways, I am getting off track... the point is that my experience playing intramural broomball was exciting and when I came to Moscow and heard about the Embassy's women's team I wanted to join and get back on the ice.

By chance I had decided to go to the Super Bowl replay party the Embassy's canteen/bar was hosting on Monday night (as it was 2am here in Moscow when the game began in the States). There I met Alicja and Linda and we got to talking about the broomball team, of which they were a part of. Hearing that I had played before, they told me I had to come play on Wednesday, as it was an early game and not very many team members could make the commute so soon after work (Traffic in Moscow is bad.... Los Angeles bad). They told me all about the Finnish team and how they had beaten them in the previous matchup. The Finnladies were seeking to avenge that loss on Wednesday....

Let's Get Ready to RUMBLE!
And avenge it they did. We were the first to arrive for the game and we started suiting up. I was surprised at all the gear the team had - padded pants, full leg guards, padded shorts, elbow guards, jersey, and helmet. They even had special shoes for playing on the ice - one team member described them as octopus tentacles because they had little holes in the foamy soles that acted like suction cups, sticking you to the frictionless ice. My big feet meant that for this game I would not be able to get and wear a pair of those shoes, and instead I scooted around on my boots. When I walked out onto the ice, I was feeling intimidated and restricted by all the protective gear I had just put on. I knew that I would have fewer bruises than when I played college broomball, but I missed the freedom of movement that jeans and a sweatshirt gave me in the game. By the end of the game, my body was thanking me for all the padding that cushioned my falls - both accidental and on purpose. After a little experimentation with sliding on my knees, I began throwing myself into the path of oncoming players, blocking shots with my arm, my stick, my legs - anything! - because I could. The padding kept me warm and helped me slide across the ice to my intended, and sometimes unintended destinations. It. Was. Awesome.

More like Fin-laddies
Those Finns were out for the win. They were serious about getting their payback. When the starting whistle blew, their team outnumbered us 3 to 1. We had one sub, they had ten. Anyone and everyone who had ever played for their team was there and they kept replacing their tired team with fresh faces throughout the entire hour. However, we were not to be intimidated by their strong showing of team members. We had a very intrepid goalie who swung from one side of the goal to the other and fought for every shot that came her way. As we rotated positions, we kept morale up with American catchphrases and cheers, making our game sound way more close than it actually was. And though it may be hard to believe that we were losing we were, more importantly, having fun. We lost, 5-1, but the whole hour was spent going from one side of the ice to the other, many shots on goal taken by both teams but only 6 went in. It was also a fairly clean fight, with the taller Finnladies having more of a tendency to high stick and the us, the Americans, being more physical in their attacks - but no one drew blood or got ejected, so score one point for diplomacy! As we got off the ice, we cheered for our team, for the referees, and for America.

Back to work...
And so my second week in Moscow and at the U.S. Embassy comes to a close. For all the people I've met and the work that I have done, I can't believe that it's been only been two weeks. This weekend I have more sightseeing planned, as I have now fully recovered from jet lag, as well as some technical issues to resolve regarding my photo slideshow here on the blog and flickr.com. I promise photos soon - especially of me in my broomball gear - and more frequent postings next week as I settle into my responsibilities and assignments as an intern.

До свидания! (Until next time!)
~Monica