PHOTO GALLERY
Kennesaw State soccer rising sophomore Julia Nelson (Marietta, Ga./Hillgrove HS) is just like any other collegiate soccer player, except for one thing. Nelson is deaf and a member of the U.S. Women’s National Deaf Team.
As far as she knows, Nelson was not born with hearing problems. Around the age of five, Cecilia and Gordon Nelson, Julia’s parents, started to notice problems, such as when they would try and talk to her in the back of the car with friends. Her friends could understand her parents perfectly fine, but Julia had trouble understanding them. Nelson’s parents got her checked out and realized it was slowly becoming worse. They believe the hairs in her ears are not long enough, so they do not vibrate as well as a normal ear’s should. Julia’s 16-year-old sister Sydney, is also deaf and also a member of the U.S. Women’s National Deaf Team.
For a little over two weeks, Nelson and the U.S. Women’s National Deaf Team will compete at the 2nd World Deaf Football Championships in Ankara, Turkey, on July 16-28. The U.S. opens group play on July 18 versus Russia at 9:30 EEST. Nelson will be sharing her experiences over in Turkey in a blog for KSUOwls.com. Here is her second installment…
Days 4-5: Preparation Time!
The days are starting to blur together and I had difficulty remembering what day it was today. Yesterday was a BLAST! We had training again at 9, but we had to share a field with the men because the opening ceremony was during our practice time, so our time slot was just eliminated. We worked on quickness and scrimmaged for the majority of the practice, and are feeling confident about our chances against our arch-rival, Russia! :)
After practice we spent some time in the spa tub to loosen our legs, before heading off to the opening ceremony, which was amazing!! We got to interact with people from other countries, including Spain and Greece. I even got a picture with a member of the Greek men’s team, #22. All of us Americans were dancing, laughing, taking pictures, and having a blast! After mingling, we went to the back of the stadium, and we all trooped in behind the American flag. There were cameras everywhere! My cheeks hurt from all the smiling. :)
We then sat down and were greeted by the tournament organizers. Unfortunately, they were speaking Turkish, and addressing a bunch of DEAF players!!!!! Then we were "entertained" by some Turkish singers and dancers. I can't say I was blown away by the performance, but it was interesting.
The following day, the day before our first game, was a very uneventful, but nerve wracking day. We were anticipating an all-out brawl against the Russians, and needless to say, were quite apprehensive about it. The team and I practiced set plays and worked on attacking, and then came back to an ice bath.
Following practice we went to the mall to buy laundry detergent, souvenirs, and snacks for the room. I got some cool bracelets and a key chain with nazars on them, which is supposed to protect the wearer from the evil eye. It is thought to shield you from the greedy glare of envious onlookers. Such a glare can cause disease and unluckiness, and we don't want that, now do we?? It looks like a ball with concentric blue and white circles. It represents the evil eye and is supposed to redirect the bad luck. We walked back to the hotel and washed our laundry in our bathtub. What five-star hotel doesn't provide complimentary laundry service!!!? Instead, we got to walk in boiling hot water to mix the soap around. What fun! :)
Our last thought before going to sleep was how many black eyes we were going to collect in the game against Russia the next day...Wish us luck!
Julia
