On January 21st and 22nd, 11 players from Basel, Zurich and Lausanne travelled to Scotland to participate at the Edinburgh International Korfball Tournament (EIKT) where 30 teams met to compete against and celebrate with each other.
Most of the Swiss team arrived on Friday, meeting for dinner – of course Haggis and mashed potatoes, Scotch eggs and other Scottish deliciousnesses – and obligatory beers in different pubs.
On Saturday morning, after a typical Scottish or British breakfast, we took a quick but insightful tour through the city, listening to anecdotes and historical fun facts told by our very own somewhat local team mate Melina.
In the early afternoon, we arrived at the hall, ready to face our opponents of the day! We got to play four 12 minute matches, winning all of them with a series of impressive goals. At that point, that exhausting day of intense warm-ups and games guided by our captain Levi wasn’t over by a long shot, as we retreated to our two story apartment we had rented in the breathtaking town center of Edinburgh, overlooking the roofs of the city and St Giles Cathedral and seeing even as far as the shore. After getting ready for what came to be a late night out, we went for dinner and drinks, and meeting the entire EIKT community for hours of dancing to the traditional Ceilidh music and choreographies that we were introduced to, and simply celebrating the night away.
Having everyone come together at that exclusively for the tournament organized social event was an extraordinary and special experience, as there was no rivalry in the air, only an indescribable sentiment of community and friendship. The night went on with a visit at another pub, slowly coming to an end when it was time to get the much needed rest for the upcoming day of playoffs.
Sunday, we faced three further opponents, in the end making 4th place out of 30, after facing a strong Holland team that made 3rd place.
In summary, this tournament weekend was an incredible opportunity to test our limits and identify our strengths and potential for improvement as well as celebrate the international Korfball community in Scottish tradition. At that point, our thanks and appreciation goes out to the organizers of the Edinburgh University Korfball club, the great teams and players we met socially and on the court, and of course our own team, which made the entire experience possible to begin with.