1st Summer Esquarian Games [IC/Everything | Esq. only]

by **Ainin** » Fri Aug 01, 2014 8:49 am

RPs do not count for points until Day -1.

Today is:
Day 1

__ __
W
elcome to Hartly, cultural centre of and gateway to the Aininian Republic. A storied city with a history rich in heritage, contrasting with its modern design and architecture, Hartly is a true international city, being the location of many prominent global events and organisations. A "second capital" for Ainin, it proudly boasts the home of the film and art communities of the country and has the country's third largest population, with over 27 million people in its metropolitan area. From the historic city centre featuring 17th century architecture to the modern financial district with its towering skyscrapers reflecting the rays of the lazy tropical sun, the city is a sight to be seen, and we thank you for doing exactly that by attending the Summer Esquarian Games, an extraordinary event for our extraordinary city.

Already home to an impressive network of public transportation, such as the exceptionally quiet and architecturally eye-catching 130-station Hartly Metro and a vast network of commuter rail spanning the Hartly Metropolitan Area, along with a massive bus network served by over 3,000 vehicles, the city's transportation networks were upgraded just in time for the Esquarian Games, featuring special articulated bus-based shuttles linking the central bus terminal with all the Games venues in Hartly that employ exclusive rights-of-way to minimalise delays due to traffic. Designed as the main people mover system of the games, it will have a high frequency, up to one every 25 seconds at certain hours.

For these games, we have upgraded the venues to feature numerous technologies in order to make the experience as enjoyable for our guests as possible. This includes the introduction of many temperature control devices and increased ventilation.

Thank you, and let the games begin.

by **Ainin** » Fri Aug 01, 2014 9:06 am

Men's Water Polo (Top two automatically advance; best two of three third places also advance)

Group A: Fontoria , Ainin , Michillies , Tarctica , Gibberan
Group B: Francilie , Unolia , Luziyca, Veselinovic , Atlantia Creek
Group C: Nevanmaa , Saint James Islands , West Cedarbrook , North Daecon

Women's Water Polo (Top two advance)

Group A: Gibberan , Fontoria , Francilie , Tarctica , Nevanmaa , Michillies
Group B: Bormeatri , Britanno , Iglesiantis , Orientalia , Atlantia Creek
Group C: Namor , The Nihilistic View , Luziyca, Masseau , North Daecon
Group D: Vyvland , Atlantica , Ainin , Unolia , Saint James Islands

Baseball (Top two advance)

Group A: Tartica , Atlantic , Roubao , Luziyca , West Cedarbrook , Bormeatri
Group B: Nevanmaa , Britanno , Vyvland , Masseau , Caucasia, Gibberan
Group C: Atlantia Creek , Namor , New Zepuha , Michillies , Unolia
Group D: Ainin , North Daecon , Iglesiantis , The Nihilistic View, Gibberan

Men's Football (Top two advance)

Group A: Atlantica , Atlantia Creek , Masseau , Francilie , Nevanmaa , Britanno , Iglesiantis
Group B: Vyvland , The Nihilistic View , Saint James Islands , Michillies , Ainin , Bormeatri, Gibberan
Group C: East Nautarya , Concordia , Rutuba , North Daecon , Veselinovic , New Zepuha,
Group D: Unolia , Luziyca , Tartica , Orientalia , Caucasia, Namor

Women's Football (Top two advance)

Group A: Veselinovic , New Zephua , Bormeatri , Saint James Islands , Ainin , Luziyca , Britanno
Group B: Michilles , Francile , Iglesiantis , Masseau , Caucasia, East Nautarya, Gibberan
Group C: Tartica , Namor , Atlantica , Gibberan , Rutuba , North Daecon
Group D: Nevanmaa , Orientalia , The Nihilistic View , Unolia , Vyvland , Atlantia Creek

Men's Handball (Top two advance)

Group A: Namor , New Zephua , Caucasia , Unolia , Nevanmaa
Group B: Luziyca , Francile , Vyvland , Chorea , Sjalhaven
Group C: Michilles , Masseau , Iglesiantis , North Daecon , The Nihilistic View
Group D: Veselinovic , Ainin , Gibberan , Tarctica , Britanno

Women's Handball (Top two advance)

Group A: Namor , Gibberan , North Daecon , Michilles , Rutuba , Tarctica
Group B: Luziyca , Caucasia, West Cedarbrook , Veselinovic , Iglesiantis
Group C: Britanno , The Nihilistic View , Unolia , Nevanmaa , Vyvland
Group D: Ainin , Masseau , Francile , New Zephua , Chorea

Men's Field Hockey (Top two advance)

Group A: Chorea , Namor , Iglesiantis , East Nautarya , Ainin , Nevanmaa
Group B: Vyvland , Luziyca , Saint James Islands , Atlantica , The Nihilistic View
Group C: North Daecon , Britanno , Michilles , Masseau , Caucasia
Group D: Tartica , Veselinovic , Unolia , Rutuba , Francilie

Women's Field Hockey (Top two advance)

Group A: Britanno , North Daecon , Ainin , Luziyca , Chorea , Atlantica
Group B: Caucasia, West Cedarbrook , Vyvland , Veselinovic , Iglesiantis
Group C: Rutuba , Masseau , Saint James Islands , Michilles , Francilie
Group D: Namor , Nevanmaa , Tartica , Unolia , The Nihilistic View

Men's Lacrosse (Top two auto advance; two best third places advance (Based on Goal Differential over Points))

Group A: Masseau , Michillies , The Nihilistic View , Ainin , Namor
Group B: Nevanmaa , Tartica , Saint James Islands , Caucasia, Iglesiantis
Group C: Britanno , North Daecon , Unolia , Bormeatri

Women's Lacrosse (Top two advance)

Group A: Nevanmaa , Tartica , Saint James Islands , Caucasia
Group B: Namor , North Daecon , Ainin , West Cedarbrook
Group C: Vyvland , The Nihilistic View , Bormeatri , Iglesiantis
Group D: Masseau , Britanno , Michillies , Unolia

Men's Rugby (Top two advance)

Group A: Caucasia, Luziyca , Bormeatri , Vyvland , East Nautarya
Group B: Francilie , Michillies , Atlantica , The Nihilistic View
Group C: Tartica , Masseau , Britanno , Ainin
Group D: Iglesiantis , Namor , North Daecon , Gibberan

Women's Rugby (Top two advance)

Group A: Gibberan , The Nihilistic View , Namor , Ainin
Group B: Michillies , Britanno , Caucasia, Atlantica
Group C: Francilie , Vyvland , Masseau , Luziyca
Group D: Tartica , North Daecon , Iglesiantis , Bormeatri

by **Ainin** » Fri Aug 01, 2014 9:07 am

Reserved

by **Ainin** » Fri Aug 01, 2014 11:48 pm

EXCLUSIVE | The Road to the Esquarian Games
DAY -6 - A Look at the Preparations and Some Analysis

The Medal Table is Back for Action! (credit: ABC Sports)

HARTLY, LK ― As the countdown to the Hartly Games gets ever shorter, the team here at ABC Sports has prepared a special report on the state of the Games preparation, along with some insight into the coming events. As official broadcasting partners of the Hartly Games, we were privy to a visit behind the scenes of the newly-renovated Ainin Airways Stadium as preparations for the opening ceremony began.

From what we observed, the Opening Ceremony is going to involve a history presentation featuring large mechanised figures and will involve recreations of pivotal scenes in the country's history, including the 12th century Battle of Attayaka, the 1801 surrender of the Namorese occupation forces and Prime Minister Lapointe's declaration of a "new egalitarian order" marking the start of the Social Revolution. Work on the various displays was nearly complete from what we could see. The show is also likely going to include a light show, as hinted by the large quantity of strobe lights on scene, and various fireworks displays. An interesting project being built in the stadium was what appeared to be large-scale electrical work being done in the stands, and we're unsure what it's for.

"It's a surprise," told us the construction site manager as he gave us a mysterious smile.

Meanwhile, reporter Laura Dawkins went to the Cartier bus maintenance centre to observe work being done for the transportation phase of the Games' logistics. We observed the decoration of several dozen articulated buses in special Hartly 2014 markings, along with upgrades such as inclusion of wireless internet hotspots and the removal of some seats to increase standing space, as Hartly Transit Deputy Superintendent Marie Anna-Dominique discussed the details of the shuttle services with us. All shuttle services will go from their respective terminals to Central Bus Station downtown, where a large mostly-unused part (Platforms 2 and 3) will be used as the start of all outbound busses, while the nearby park-and-ride was temporarily replaced with a massive unloading dock for incoming buses at the end of their routes.

"Maximum efficiency," she proudly boasted to us.

As for the Games themselves, we have come up with some reasonably realistic predictions for the results. We predict that Ainin will arrive second in the Games by standard count, behind Unolia and in front of Namor, and third by total medal count, behind Unolia once again and Luziyca, whose jingoistic media will surely again spew worse nonsense than the Voice of Nautarya (is that even possible?). Football remains anyone's game, but previous Coupe d'Esquarium victors Luziyca and Vyvland are heavily favoured by betters. Shooting is a toss-up between Unolian prodigy shooter Chang Biao, who won massive acclaim at Brookopolis 2013, and Aininian newcome Mike Hunt, who, ignoring his comically inappropriate name, has had a great performance on the national circuit. Handball, baseball and softball are expected to be entirely swept over by Unolia, while Vyvland seems favoured to win many tennis events. Aininian star athletes are scattered through many events, so Aininian medallists will be more scattered around the various events.

On a final note, as of the date of publication, the promised $75 million bus terminal at the Athletes' Village remained incomplete, still lacking running water and electricity according to a worker that did not wish to be identified, and the building's roof seemed to be in an early stage of completion. A Hartly Transit spokesman dismissed the issue when asked, noting that roof construction would only last two more days and that the complex will be connected to the city grids as soon as the roof work is complete.

And, as always, let's go Team Ainin! Allons-y les bleus-blancs-verts!

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About me · by **Luziyca** » Sat Aug 02, 2014 11:50 am

One week to go until the Esquarian Games

Rank Country G S B
1. Luziyca 0 0 0
0. ? 0 0 0

Medal table

HARTLY, AININ - For the past few weeks, the Luziycan delegation to the inaugural Summer Esquarian Games has been practicing in Hartly, Ainin, where the games are slated to begin in a week's time. Our team is practicing not just at the stadiums that they are slated to compete, but in city parks and civic pools, but luckily, we found time to interview the flagbearer, Clop I-My on how the practice sessions are so efficient.

Our intrepid reporter, Sara Gudmund asked her "How prepared do you think you are for the Esquarian Games?"
Clop I-My respond, "Very. We began practicing months before, like last September, we began practicing on a state level by going to the largest city in each state or republic. Then we met up in Bethlehem in March so we all can meet other and practice as a team for the first time. Then for the past month, we are practicing in Hartly, and I have full confidence it is going to be well."

"What sports do you anticipate getting a gold medal in?" she asks.
Clop replies, "Definitely football. Our EG football team has practiced for a long time and using similar strategies to the Semrov Patriots in the first Chaska i Esquarium. Hopefully, we are going to win football, for we'll be using 1-1-8, just like the Patriots. Another is the 1,500m, where I have high confidence for Leo Tolstoy winning. After that, I doubt we'll take much in the way of gold. Most likely silver or bronze, or worse, nothing. But if we lose football, we would humiliate the world."

"How do you practice?"
"Well," Clop replies, "each of the 540-member delegate chosen by the Luziycan Esquarian Games Committee, or LEGC for short, which we say Leg-ka, is divided into twenty groups of twenty-seven, with a "group leader" assigned to make sure that the remaining twenty-six gets to the practices on time. It is a difficult regimen, but for my group, I'm doing the women's 100m freestyle. I am trying my best to win, and please not just Luziyca, but to please my home region of Nantai."

"What do you plan on doing for the opening ceremony?"
"March in, maybe we sing Moya strana tis tebya, wave to the crowd, then basically go where the rest of the teams go, I guess. I got no clue, LEGC is the one that makes the decision. But at least we know the dress attire: the traditional clothes of our ethnicity. So I get to wear traditional Namorese clothes, I know Lombardians will wear traditional Lombardian clothes, Swedes and Geads their clothes, and the Slavs their own. Azena will wear Western-style business suits because LEGC has determined that their traditional clothes are unsuitable for the audience, which is a bit stupid, in my opinion."

"I wish you luck in the Esquarian Games."
"Thank you."

With that, it will be about a week before the opening ceremonies are due to occur. It will be a very interesting time to see, Luziycans flying to Ainin, to see the games in person, especially in football, where tickets have been lined up. Many will watch it from internet streams, television, and bars to observe the events.

by **Namor** » Sat Aug 02, 2014 6:31 pm

Esquarian Games in Hartly about to begin
A Look at What's Ahead and Who's Got What

August 2, NMR 2369

HARTLY, AININ - Bienvenue à Talonée! That's "Welcome to Hartly" in Namhoi, or "French" as the Aininians call it. In the next few days, the best of the best, the old and the rookies, and the avenged and the avengers all come together to race for the podium and the medals they contain.

Will Namor dominate the Hartly Gold Rush? Only the performance
of our athletes can tell

To some, this is not only going to be a Games of athletic importance, but of pride as well. Ainin, which will host the first Summer Games, has put a lot of money into the opening ceremonies alone, and is preparing to receive the world with open arms. For us, our sentiment cannot be put in a way better than Zeng Haijeng, National Esquarian Games Committee President, "This is not Brookopolis, this is Hartly. Namor is coming and we're going to show the world just how determined we are to sweep that podium."

President-General Fu Wen, after dealing with Peitoa by finishing it, is now on his way to Hartly to attend the opening ceremony of the Hartly Games. We don't know if other heads of state will do the same.

What is concerning per se is the opening ceremonies. The Aininian government spent billions of ramon on it, and it is expected to be one of the most glamorous opening ceremonies any sporting event in Esquarium has seen. But according to Aininian media, "the Opening Ceremony is going to involve a history presentation featuring...the 12th century Battle of Attayaka, the 1801 surrender of the Namorese occupation forces and Prime Minister Lapointe's declaration of a 'new egalitarian order' marking the start of the Social Revolution." What a great way for an ally to troll us, but someday we'll host the Games and troll back.

The torch is lit, and as people cheer, let us hope he's right!

Aquatics - Formidable As Ever

The Namorese are expected to put on quite some jolly good show in the pool. Swimmers like Miko Sangjan and Hung Wu have a chance to win gold. Don't forget Youja Kana (flag bearer) and Peng Gladys, whose chance of winning are even higher. Kana and Gladys will be competing in all four strokes, relays, while Peng will take on the gruesome 10,000m. Many of Namor's swimmers entered the Games fresh from military service, and rumor has it that they swim from mainland Namor to Geilinor and back as a form of daily training. Not to scare anybody---PTH Sports cannot verify and validity of this rumor, so we're going to let the people decide whether it's true or not.

Athletics - Eh, Eh, and Meh

The fact taht Namorese aren't Southwest Esquarians excuse us from having to run 100m in like, what, 10 seconds?, and do other crazy stuff. We never looked so great in these something-meter dashes. Still though, pay attention to runners Pao Bu, Chang Tucai, Jing Huan, Ulan Han and hurdler Lu Mangha; on the women's side, runners Yunis Van, Tagan Tian, jumpers Gao To and Joli Vang, and finally, pole vaulters Nadezhda Bogdana and Yezu Nini.

If Namor wins a medal from athletics, count us baffled.

Judo

Not tachundo, unfortunately, but still martial arts. For us to look extremely pathetic in judo is unacceptable. Fortunately, Ji Ro and Yang Guang have a good chance in kicking ass.

Tell you what's ridiculous, though---the Luziycans are employing some Nantai Namorese to kick ass for them. The Esquarian Games Committee should take some action, because this is not right.

Legal actions aside, do permit us to move to something that legitimately matters, like

Gymnastics - Seeing Gold

The good news is that other countries don't understand the aesthetic-ness, beauty and strategy of artistic gymnastics, so they don't have decent gymnasts. That means unless the Crolacians manage to slip a champ through, the entire podium is going to be Namorese. We are PTH Sports, like most of you, see gold already. Now all our gymnasts need to do is take it, take it all! After all, Namorese gymnasts are known for their professionalism, elegance and incomparable excellence.

I mean, one can't deny how far Lu Jin, Wu Zang, Dong Hua and Aksa Kudesi have gone these days. Eyes are on "Lenfa" especially, who won the title of Master of Sport (HT) at only 15 years old, becoming the youngest person to win the title. Wu Zang, who is currently a First-Degree Sportsperson and aiming to become a candidate for HT, or even HT by the end of these Games. With virtually no competition in this field, Namor's economy will be destroyed when they return home with the gold they won.

Volleyball

Beach volleyball players Shamo Pachu, Nanren Taren, Shenwo Nakume and Jiao Chen can count themselves lucky if they sneak a victory past their obviously superior Michillian counterparts. Not much luck is needed, though, since all four players are pretty pros by our standards.

Shooting

Tzo Jing will take part in the 10m Air Pistol, and he is most likely going to mow Unolian favorite Chiang Biao, who made his debut performance in the Brookopolis Winter Games after taking gold in the biathlon. The bad news is that Chiang will compete in more events than Tzo, so even if Tzo wins the 10m he is probably going to fall short of medals. Still, a victory might piss off the Unolians and the Triumvirate. Cross your fingers, Namorese people, and hope that our shooting athletes will do their best to defeat the hourglasses.

Field Hockey

Both Namor's men's and women's field hockey teams will annihilate all the other hockey teams. After all, which other country besides Namor has had a head of state that was once a field hockey champion?

Football

Don't even expect the Namorese to win football. We suck at football, just look at how far we got in the Esquarian Cup, enough said. We are sad to say this, but let's just let the Luziycans and Vyvlanders to win here. They can take what doesn't matter.

Conclusion

The Hartly Games will see a great year in the sporting history of the Namorese nation. Unlike how it was in Unolia, when few athletes came out for Namor and won only one medal, this time, we are expecting many medals to be won for Mother Namor.

Other news
Nevanmaa prepares for 90th anniversary of domestic uprising - A military parade is scheduled to be held in Nevanlinna in celebration of the Nevan government's suppression of a Communist uprising ninety years ago.
Namorese FM: No "royal family" existent in Namor - After Nevanmaa extended an invitation to the "royal families" of Namor, Vyvland, among other countries, the Foreign Ministry said that the so-called invitation is a "joke, provided that there is no royal family in Namor. The descendants of the last Antelopian Dynasty emperor are now living somewhere under a new alias, and do not seek monarchist restoration."

COMMENTS

Wang Qishan
Did I just read that the Aininians are going to present their so-called war of independence from us? Holy crap, someone's going to get offended. I wonder what will happen if Fu Wen sees it, given that he is going there to see the opening ceremony. 47 4

Ru Wuping
@Wang Qishan Dude no need to worry. It's their country, they can troll whoever they like. At least they won't act like immature Luzzies and say "death to Namor." 93 5

by **Michillies** » Sat Aug 02, 2014 10:27 pm

-retconned-

by **Masseau** » Sun Aug 03, 2014 8:33 am

^{The Masseau Post}

"The freshest and finest news in all of Masseau"

The Hartly Games Preview
Written by Matthew Page, August 3rd, 2014

HARTLY, AININ - One week ago, the athletes arrived in Hartly, Ainin, where the Esquarian Summer Games are being hosted. The trip to the Aininian city was a relatively short one, as Masseau is not that far away from the host country, which may give them advantages as nations from Eastern Esquarium will inevitably suffer the hated "jet lag". This week, the athletes get prepared for what could be the biggest and most important competition of their lives. There will be fierce, long games of tennis, photo-finish swimming competions, beach volleyball comebacks, and much, much more. We'll give you the latest and greatest on the Massean athletes, and some predictions that we have on who will achieve gold in the first ever Massean participation of the games.

The men's water polo team was ready to go for gold in the Games. Led by center Benny Holland, the talented veteran from Wellsboro, they were fine with their underdog position in the groups. In fact, they were happy. "I'd rather be the underdog who puts up a fight and loses in the finals than the overdog who wins in the finals, any day," said wing Myron Baker. There were a group of fans to greet them in the Oceano International Airport. Sadly, they never got to see them. As they were leaving the team practice facility in the team bus, An 18-wheeler that belonged to Lovem Chips Company transporting bags of chips to Pawnee City going an estimated 25 mph over the speed limit (60 mph) ran into the team bus. The bus flipped twice and rolled to a stop about 10 yards off of Highway O-2.

However, a couple of bystanders stopped their vehicles and immediately ran to the bus, knowing that lives were at stake. The two citizens that stopped were Glen Graham and Claire Wise, who then immediately called for medical help. Thankfully, none of the team members perished during the accident. The one death was the driver of the 18-wheeler, whom his family would like for his name to stay anonymous. The members of the team were immediately taken to the Central Nason Hospital, about 15 minutes away from the site of the accident. The injuries sustained were enough to keep them out of contention in the Games but none were life-threatening, according the the Masseau Water Sports Federation.

We asked Benny Holland on the situation. He sustained minor injuries. We asked him on the topic of the tragedy of not being able to compete in the Hartly Games. "It is definitely heart-breaking. I've trained for this my whole life, and not being able to compete in such a big event like this, being in front of the crowd really excites me and pressures me to do my best in front of my country, you know, and not being able to face the top teams is disappointing. I'll be ready next Games though, so I will focus on that, instead of what could of been." Despite the tragedy, the team will fly tomorrow to watch the Games and cheer on their female counterparts. The two bystanders have received 5 free plane and Esquarium tickets for each person, and they will have reserved seats in the stands as a thanks from the Massean Federation. The team have also been selected as the flag-bearers of Masseau for the opening ceremony.

Predictions

Onto a lighter topic, which are predictions for most of the Massean athletes about how they'll fare in their events. Our first predictions are for the aquatic sports. In these events, Masseau should know what they're doing. Aaron King, Baylor Wedge and Charlie Point are some amazing swimmers, and those are only a handful of the great swimmers that Masseau is sending to the Games. We expect at least 4 medals in these events, although there will possibly be more medals achieved by the athletes.

Next is archery, athletics and baseball. We do not expect a medal from archery, as there is greater competitors within Esquarium. However, the athletics portion is something that the Masseans are excited about. From Owen Wells to Hannah Shaw, Masseau has a good shot in Men's 5,000m, 200m, Discus Throw and a few other event We think that Masseau will snatch 2 medals, and with the phenomenal baseball team, there is a good chance for a third medal.

Next, our prediction for the cycling events. As far as cycling goes, Masseau is fairly new, due to the flat climate, making biking very easy to learn but hard to master the gears and speed of the bike. However, the combination of Terry Owens, Lillian Curry and Molly Lowe should make for a super pursuit team. We expect one medal, maybe two, if the men perform like the women are expected to perform.

Fencing is a rather large sport in Masseau compared to other seemingly unpopular sports. There is a whole genre on the sport itself, in movies and books. Representing Masseau in the fencing are a rather small group of individuals, but they are insanely talented. The Men's Team Epee should be fun to watch for Massean fencing fans, as well as Terri Sparks in the Sabre and the Epee. We think that the Massean fencers will impress, bringing home two medals. Terri Sparks could even bring home 3 gold medals for Masseau.

Like the jerseys, this team is young and new, to international football. However, with Rafael Mendez, the midfielder who was born for soccer, with great speed, footwork and ability, Kent Graham, the young striker, who won the Best Overall Player Award from Pawnee City, whom where regular season champions, and the all-star women's team, we expect that both teams will get out of their group. However, there is a low chance to win anything if there are 3 other groups you have to compete against.

Next are Gymnastics, Handball, Field Hockey and Judo. Women's Gymnastics contain a good team with nearly no flaws. We think there's a medal there, possibly. The Women's Handball team is above average, but don't count on a win every time. This is the same with the men's field hockey team. There is Possibly a medal there. We have a lot of talent in Judo. Expect either Arnold Scott or Melody Gill to earn a medal in these events. They are the greatest set of Judo competitors that are in Masseau.

Here we have Lacrosse, Shooting and Tennis. The women's lacrosse team could go all the way and earn gold. You should watch for them to possibly make a run out of their group. Wilbur Gill is a dangerous shooter and we're expecting him to take home something. Our national tennis program is average, but with the combination on Norma Mitchells and Patsy Guerrero, you could see a medal there. We expect 1-3 medals, depending on how well Gill shoots in the 1st Summer Esquarian Games.

Next, Trialthlon, Volleyball and Weightlifting and Greco-Roman. We have a great athlete in Ben Delgado, who should definitely medal. In volleyball, our beach team might get far, but with Unolia in the way, we most likely won't medal here. However, our men's indoor is very talented and could take a medal, but don't count on it. Weightlifting and Greco-Roman are sports that I know Masseau will at least take 2 medals here, due to the lack of a significant obesity rate in Masseau. I say 3-5 medals here.

Overall, It will not be a bad first impression for Masseau, we'll win some, lose some, grieve some, and earn some medals. It will be a remembered year in Masseau sporting, and we here can not wait to watch. Happy Games, and go Masseau!

(Television providers on the series will be Ainin's own ABC Sports. Check out their app that has all the live news on the go.)

Comments (54)
Sorted By: Most Controversial/Top

Josephine Waters
Liked: 7 Disliked: 276
Screw the men's polo team. they wouldnt have won anyways!!

Gretchen Burgress
Liked: 79 Disliked: 5
Who else will cheer for minutes when masseau earns they're first medal?

Johnnie Rodgers
Liked: 211 Disliked: 13
Can't wait to see the men's polo team win next summer games.

by **Saint James Islands** » Sun Aug 03, 2014 3:31 pm

a century of excellence | 3 august 2014

looking to harlty 2014
your esquarian games preview

If this is anything like Brookopolis, the Summer Games in Hartly will be an epic to remember.

Hartly, Ainin - The teams now prepare to head for Hartly, Ainin for the 2014 Esquarian Summer Games. Big names like Namor and Iglesiantis will be there. The controversial ones Luziyca, Nevanmaa and Roubao will be there too. Britanno, Masseau, West Cedarbrook, Michillies, Concordia and Kastiya are just some of the other names that will be joining them and the hosts in the inaugural event.

the saint jamesian team
Team Saint James Islands, as its officially called, will be entering 37 events in eight disciplines. While it isn't the largest team in the Games by a long shot, the few dozen sportsmen and women will be representing one of the smallest countries in Esquarium with pride.

In diving, Petera Moana and Alicia Flint will compete under the Birds Beak Banner in both the 3 metre and 10 metre events. Four swimming relay teams and four athletic relay teams have been assembled to compete under the Banner as well, while the Islands will contest water polo, indoor volleyball, football, lacrosse and field hockey. Justin Abel, Gabriel Poirier, Honorine Fabre, Dianne Proulxwill attempt to bring home honour in gymnastics, while Ashton Bannerman, Rick Ilbert, Charity Law, Maybelline Christinsen and Léontine Archambault will contest tennis glory. Neama Iokua and Petera Mikara will play on the beach, attempting to win gold in mens' beach volleyball, with Kiana Ngaire and Karena Hine as their female counterparts. And last, but not least, Kurina Kapena, Sean Cassidy, Joncarlo Amaros, Anyamarïa Mastetorres, Asia Baucus and Eko Leilani will run for their lives (or the gold, if you want to get more literal) in the individual athletics events.

the opposition
Some of the biggest sporting names in Esquarium will be showing up at the Games. The Unolians will dominate handball, while the Michillians will be hard to challenge in volleyball. Namor will contend for the gymnastic titles, while Luziyca has oddly little other than football it could really look forward to winning.

Saint James Islanders will have to plow through some tough names from Ainin and the like if it wants to win in tennis. Mens' football will likely be an all-out competition, with Luziyca and Vyvland likely to come out on top, leaving it completely out of reach of the Islanders.

In short, there's not much we can do but sit back and watch. Maybe take some iced tea and enjoy the events that we're not competing in.

how will we fare
Not so well, we're afraid. Countries like Ainin, Unolia, Luziyca and Namor are certain to dominate the medal tables at the expense of the Commonwealth. We're not going to place anywhere near any of them, so don't expect to.

These games won't be pretty for the Islanders. But with a little bit of elbow grease, a couple of bronze medals or even a silver could be in the forseeable future for the Commonwealth. Tennis, lacrosse and football will be where the Islanders shine, while qualifying for medal events for gymnastics, diving or athletics will be a miracle from high heaven.

In the end, E Mare Libertas may not play on the podiums in Hartly, but Team Saint James Islands will show Esquarium what it is capable of.

for your reading pleasure

Toloupum Fever strikes in Arctica ▶
Namorese Liberation Army captures capital of Peitoa Authority ▶
Britannon coalition falls apart over WETO membership ▶
LAFB Sudalto to be downsized ▶

comments
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showing 1-5 of 412 reload
Jonmarco di Lucca 56▲ 37▼
Esquarian Games? We'll totally take home some medals!

dickem69 0▲ 163▼
saint james isnt going to win anything losers luziyca stronk

Nicuolo Cruces 112▲ 1▼
@dickem69: Haven't we had enough Luzzies spam the UCN comments sections already?

Stephan Bernard 97▲ 9▼
Can't wait for the games. Ainin is an absolutely deserving host and will do this event justice.

Anne-Marie Bouchard 54▲ 12▼
The only thing I watch at these types of events is the women's beach volleyball. Makes me kind of jealous...

by **Atlantia Creek** » Sun Aug 03, 2014 5:47 pm

Jacqueline Testragose, Sports Correspondent

Hartly, Ainin

In Hartly, formidable competitors from Atlantia Creek are here to battle it out with the other competitors from Esquarium in the Esquarian Games. The most likely medal contenders are Brenda Kirkland for aquatics and many more are battling for a medal. We expect to get several medals at the Esquarian Games.

by **Britanno** » Mon Aug 04, 2014 2:21 am

Hartly 2014: Team Britanno

BNB Sports Correspondent Michael Owen takes a look at the strengths and weaknesses of Team Britanno for the upcoming Esquarian Games in Ainin.

Britanno has set it sights on Hartly with the biggest team ever sent by the country to an international tournament. With many medals anticipated, the tension is growing along with the excitement. Every country has its strengths and weaknesses, and ours is no different. So here we go, let's take a look and Team Britanno.

Archery
We might progress past the first round a couple of times here, no further. Archery is one of the least played sports in Britanno that made it to Hartly, so we can't expect much. In terms of funding, they get very little.

Athletics
Let's start with the track events. Anthony Green will be aiming for a medal in both the 100 and 200 metre sprints. As the fastest man in Britanno, we'd expect nothing less. After disappointing results in recent years, he really picked up lately and is on form. Other athletes expected to do well from the male tent on the track are Andrew Clark and Robby Evers. We don't really have any great women sprinters, though Jane Green could cause an upset and get a bronze, achieving what would have to be a personal best in the process. Moving on to field, the honest truth is that we're screwed. Not a single athlete could even have a chance at getting a medal. Enough said.

Baseball
Another event where we can't have high hopes. Britanno's never been good at baseball, and if funding remains the same, we never will. The budget has always been low, and combining baseball's unpopularity and our uselessness at playing it, some have called for its funding to be cut completely.

Basketball
Basketball is pretty much the same. Neither the male or the female squads show it, but it's true. In all fairness, we can criticise them for enthusiasm, they're always crowd pleasers.

Boxing
When one Irene Walker is the best we've got in boxing, any optimism should be crushed. Looking at our team, it feels more like they were sent for the sake of sending someone rather than their talent. Is that too harsh? No, the honest truth is.

Cycling
James West and John Reynolds are our strong representatives here, and they both happen to be competing in the same event. We should be hoping for a medal.

Diving
Nobody is very optimistic about our chances here. Joel Kendall is our best shot here, and yet he's way down the world rankings. Diving has had next to no increase in funding over the past few years, compared to most other sports that have enjoyed a wave of new money to spend developing venues and recruiting athletes.

Fencing
I know the negativity expressed in this article might be boring you now, but there's more to come. We were quite good at handling swords hundreds of years ago when we cut down all that turned up on our shores, but these days our skills seem to be lacking.

Football
This is one of those sports where you can't make a prediction. With so many squads having such high quality, it's impossible to choose a winner. Vyvland and Luziyca are both being mentioned a lot due to their victories in the Coupe d'Esquarium. We are one of those teams that have a chance to do well, but there will be tough matches ahead and we can only be so optimistic. Other hopefuls will be Nevanmaa, Iglesiantis, Masseau, North Daecon, Michillies and Atlantica. We happen to be in a group with several of them for the mens football, so we might fail to progress any further than the first round unfortunately. Our female team should have better luck though.

Handball
We'll be out first round here, no questions asked. Handball is currently one of those sports that get played by kids in their PE lessons when the teachers have forgotten to plan a lesson or just couldn't be bothered. Unless this changes, we won't see any changes in our success rate.

Hockey
After all my scepticism in this article, I finally have some good news. We are undoubtedly the best in the world at hockey, and all those who question it will soon be silenced when they see both our squads sinking their teeth into gold medals. If we can't get both golds, we should be more than just disappointed.

Judo
So now that the good news with hockey is over, let's go back to normal. Britanno lacks any skills in judo, and it's ridiculous to think we'd ever improve. The sport is gradually becoming more popular though, mainly due to a recent increase in funding. Lots of young people seem to be taking up the sport, but them promptly decide they no longer wish to continue.

Lacrosse
We're not that bad at lacrosse. It could be much worse, but we'll be lucky to progress at all. There's some real strong teams out there, we're not one of them.

Rugby
A bunch of men shoving each other with the occasional sprint has never appealed to the Britannon people. It's incredibly unpopular, with professional games failing to attract large crowds at a level.

Shooting
Few people in Britanno ever come close to a gun. Civilian ownership has not been legal for as long as guns can be traced in our country, but then again, few would be able to afford one till the 1950s. By then, the social culture of society had turned massively against guns, especially after seeing the drastic consequences of gun violence in the civil war only two decades before, which was then followed by the bloody Second Great War.

Softball
What's softball again? Most people don't know what it is, which might give you an idea of how well we do in international tournaments. Unolia will dominate here far out of the reach of most teams who are often not much higher in standard than Britanno.

Swimming
We'll have our ups and downs here, but we should be very disappointed if we fail to get any medals. Kenton Jansen is one of the best in the world at the 100m breaststroke, and he'll have his eyes on the top prize. But he's not alone in medal ambitions. Brandon Lynwood, Cree Taylor, Sidney Evered, Robbie Myers, Darren Corbel and Irene Hicks are all swimmers who have good chances. Irene Hicks especially.

Tennis
Harrison Smith and Elizabeth Halsbey are our best hopes here. The former will be looking for a gold, but he'll face stiff competition to get there. Our other swimmers aren't terrible, but none of them have a chance at winning a medal unfortunately.

Triathlon
Another event where we're screwed. Back in the day, we were amazing at triathlon, but despite the successes of our previous athletes, the next generation wasn't inspired and it appealed to very few. Most gave in when they realised they weren't good enough to pursue a professional career, exploring more common career options over the intense training required for the triathlon.

Volleyball
Our female beach team are ok here, but it's unlikely that they'll play well enough to win a medal. They haven't exactly been on form lately. Our other teams are, putting it bluntly, crap.

Water Polo
Sorry to both Britannon teams in advance, but you don't stand a chance. It's unlikely we'll progress at all in the competition in this sport, with neither squad having any big names or newsworthy performances.

Headlines
World: NLA forces take control of Peitoa completely as the ousted leader seeks asylum in Arnborg, denying plans to set up a government-in-exile.
Sport: Preparations for the Hartly Esquarian Games come to an end as excitement for the event grows as every day passes.
World: New Zepuha and Gibberan agree to peace talks following gains for Gibberan in the ongoing Summer War.
Politics: Talks commence between the three left wing parties represented in the legislature over a possible big-tent left wing party that advocates for increased workers rights and left economic policies.

by **Iglesian Archipelago** » Wed Aug 06, 2014 9:45 am

Stadyu

How will the Igles perform at the Esquarian Games?
by Karen Bau

Iglesiantis is full of hopes when it comes to the Esquarian Games. We don't know if we're going to top the table, because that's a thing only performance will make it that way. Only time will tell. But if we don't, take these athletes as an inspiration to a constant development of Iglesian society, one where sport plays a very important role, as we see in martial arts, such as brayen.

Mayen Shayween and Yara Shay in swimming, our water polo and football teams, Yaryn Kwara and Yara Seynwey in archery, Petyr Syman, Karyn Bylayne and Yama Laxy in athletics, boxer Maya Leysay and cyclist Ean Eylu, what would you expect more from this elite? These are the events Iglesians have talked the most about, so we hope to see if we get good results with these athletes. The irony is that Iglesiantis speaks most of the time whether FK Irana is gonna beat Evylena Larena by whatever result of 1-0, like football is the only sport in the world, the same way TV news covers Iglesiantis like it's the only country in the world. It's time to go beyond those borders, and for sport newspapers to begin to talk about this event that is the Esquarian Games, which showcases far more of the potentials of the nations as ones made of sport.

We'd probably be weak at Greco-Roman wrestling, fencing and gymnastics, though, which is ironic given that we have produced lots of giant names in all these sports. I'd suppose that's the same thing we see from our students at PE because we're seeing that Iglesian youth are getting fat (too much fast food now... now everything has to be and come fast, really... no long term projects here in Iglesiantis, everything has to come at short term...) and spend less time doing exercise and too much time on TV watching the same stupid soap operas or playing computer games.

But maybe we get a good result at the medal tally. Of course the games have not begun yet, Team Iglesiantis has just arrived at Hartly by the time I publish this article... I hope they do a lot of exercise before they begin, and I wish to all of them good luck!

by **West Cedarbrook** » Thu Aug 07, 2014 1:58 pm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJpSPvBmjwg
Radio West Cedarbrook Overseas Service
Radio Cedarbrook Occidental Servicia Michillèse
רדיו המערב סידר רוק שירות עברית
Radio West Cedarbrook Deutscher Service
Радіо захід кедрБрук служби Kраїни

Radio West Cedarbrook News:

4:00 PM, Wrycova Central Time

... News skipped here for your listening pleasure ...
In Sports:
Excitement is building nationwide over the upcoming Esquarian Games in Hartly, Ainin. Nationwide television coverage of the games will be provided this year on West Cedarbrook 1.

In Water Polo: No bets here, as we take up the basement in Group C. Nevanmaa looks to dominate this group and move forward.

The Baseball team seems to have a decent chance, in group A, led by Righ Hand Pitching phenom Aiden Hershberger. All games will be covered live from Clarkson Field in Hartly sur-le-Lac.

Women's Handball has a shot, although the clear favorite in Group B this year is Iglesiantis. The team has had ball handling problems in practice, but coach Winters has assured Radio West
Cedarbrook that these are in the past and the girls are ready for action.

Not much is expected in Diving or Swimming, with our best efforts expected from Brad Braslovsky at the 400 m. Freestyle, and Chiam Rodzinsky in the 100 m. Breaststroke.

Rugby shows both men's and women's teams middling.

In Shooting, coverage of the team at the Proficere Velodrome, Marlane will be covered live, featuring Flagbearer Cindy Levine. Yeah!

OUr Women's Volleyball teams, both Beach and Indoor are cute, but middling.

In Weightlifting, what is wrong with our guys? Aviva Gershon at 69 kg. is our best shot to medal here. You go, girl! The girls are making our boys look bad in Judo also, with Tina Crevecoeur
having a chance to medal. C'mon men, step up!

Finally the boys show up in Wrestling, with Terry Sheldon having a good chance in the 96 kg. Greco-Roman event.

In Track, How High, LeBron? James LeBron shows real potential in the High Jump, and Ileen Keller should put in a good showing at the 100 m. event.

Boxing will be covered live at St. John Stadium in Jasper Hill. Nozek Tarkowsky contends at Middleweight, and Heavyweight Bert Hefter has a good chance.

In Fencing, double meh.

In a preemptive move the West Cedarbrook Baseball Team has offered "Emperor" Jimmy Luba a free ticket to the games, air fare and travel not included. Pitcher Aiden Hershberger said

With all the strange invites and whatnot to fake royalty going around, it was the least we could do for the team. I know Jimmy's a fan, and would never
want to embarrass the KWC, but we thought we'd send him the ticket, before any foreign country does.

Reached in Ft. Joseph, where he is working on a database installation,
the "heir" to the Luba Empire replied

Thanks guys. I'd like to attend, but that's right in the middle of this honkin' big install. I'll catch all the action on West Cedarbrook 1.

Luba still claims ownership of The Greene Rocks, which he describes as his "Kingdom of East Cedarbrook", although the rocks remain the legal property and under the jurisdiction of the West Cedarbrook Navy.

On behalf of Radio West Cedarbrook, we wish all teams good luck, and a safe journey.

About me · by **Luziyca** » Thu Aug 07, 2014 4:15 pm

It was the day before the opening ceremony. The entire Luziycan team were in Hartly for the past few weeks, practicing very hard in preparation for the Esquarian Games. Luziyca would make its presence felt in every event, with the Luziycan Esquarian Games Committee (LEGC, pretty clunky) deciding on 540 athletes, the maximum number, hence why they chose athletes. Sure, they would be average, but Luziycans have been known for their exceptionalism. They may need a break from Luziycan exceptionalism.

Everyone knew what sport they'd be invested in though: football. Not Lombardian football, although that would be cool. It was association football, with Luziyca having one of the best football teams that helped Luziyca win the inaugural Coupe d'Esquarium or as the Luziycans wish it were named and do know it as, "Chaska i Esquarium." But what they may lack in skill, they make up for with national pride.

The sun was rising, and Clop I-My was ready to get her team from the Luziycan complex at the Games Village to the Aininian Airways Stadium: the stadium where the opening ceremonies will begin for the inaugural Summer Esquarian Games. They now were all having breakfast at the cafeterias, but soon, Clop I-My ordered them to gather outside. They all did so.

But today, after weeks of practice, Clop I-My and the LEGC President, Joseph Ballotine gathered at the main plaza for the games.

Clop I-My said, "Before I announce today's practice, I am going to let the LEGC President, Joseph Balltoine speak. Will you come up, please?"

She then stepped aside and the old man, probably in his sixties or seventies step out. His hair was grey and balding, he was wearing glasses and he used a cane. The entire delegation applauded, before Ballotine tapped on his microphone.

Ballotine then said, "Dear athletes. You are the best of the best: you are what this free nation of ours has to offer. You have proven your worth and your skill with constant weeks of practice in Hartly. While all the other delegations are coming now, we've been here at the site for weeks, training in Hartly to give ourselves an advantage. I don't want a disappointment, or no medals: we must come back with one gold. And I'm trusting the football team to take care of that, is that clear?"

"JA!" everyone said.

"Good," Ballotine said. "I shall hand back to Clop I-My."

Clop then said, "Today, we are going to rehearse our opening ceremony march at the Aininian Airways Stadium, then after that, besides the teams that have their events today, you shall relax. Take a break, explore the city. You deserve it for all your hard work."

by **Michillies** » Thu Aug 07, 2014 5:05 pm

-retconned-

by **Ainin** » Thu Aug 07, 2014 9:26 pm

Day -1
Cutoff time: lol forgot to specify one
Scorination time: approx. 80 minutes
Message of the Day: Turns out elephant guns aren't made out of elephants

Pastebin version: http://pastebin.com/xK29H7gK

by **The Jahistic Unified Republic** » Thu Aug 07, 2014 10:37 pm

by **Michillies** » Thu Aug 07, 2014 11:11 pm

-retconned-

by **Arctican Confederation** » Thu Aug 07, 2014 11:15 pm

Arctican National Network (ANN)

Home|Arctica|Esquarium|Politics|Anarchy|ENTERTAINMENT|Miscellaneous|Submit Report|Login/Register
Top Headlines: Esquarian Games Day -1: Bittersweet Progresses

Esquarian Games Day -1: Bittersweet Progresses
Version: International

Date: August 3, 2014

Soon before the Opening Ceremony, the archery and football teams became the first to engage in competition with other athletes. Most progresses made by Tarctican athletes could use some improvement, but overall we could be grateful that we have made at least some advances in the Esquarian Games. Let's get into detail about what the results were and how our archers and football players performed.

Women's Archery
For Tarctica, women's archery did not turn out very well. Our best performer in this area was Ulyssie Magmus, scoring a total of 623, but even her notable strength shown in her home country did not compare effectively to other archers. Magmus landed in 25, while Olivia Monschton (617) was eliminated as she was in position 34. Sarah Timothy (622) was at 27, two below Magmus. Despite our heavy setbacks, we should consider ourselves lucky that we did not have to witness any more of our archers eliminated here. In fact, we should also congratulate them on participating in a renowned international sports competition. Hopefully Tarctica won't be in the doldrums in the next few events.

As for the other countries, Panuan Ai of Unolia was first in this field, while the second was snatched by Hermoine Young of The Nihilistic View and the third is in possession of Alisia von Schutzen of New Zepuha.

Men's Archery
Those in Men's Archery fared better than the above participants mentioned. Oppenheimer Dovins was at the lowest at 31th place, but he was spared from elimination and so we should definitely send some kudos to him. Wiliemn Kastor shot his arrows way up in the charts and took 11th place, while two places up Gordon Richardson performed best in archery. That isn't bad, and it's actually surprising that our athletes manage to reach such a decent level (to us, anyways) considering the 1+ year Anarchy and crazy issues going on elsewhere.

Ming Fa of Orientalia fetched first as Alfred Wright of The Nihilistic View (again) landed into second place. The third belonged to Cicero Thompson of, yet again, The Nihilistic View.

Men's and Women's Football
Tarctica's team engaged with Orientalia and the ending resulted in the opponent gaining one single point above us. This close skirmish directly paved a way and guided us to the bottommost levels of Group D, the group that Tarctica turbulently resides.

We weren't so unlucky in the women's side, as our team scored three perfect goals against North Daecon's team. Perhaps our victory here was the best of our first progresses, because it also makes us the first in Group C at this point of time. In other news of the same sport, Unolia kicked towards the top in Men's Group D as Atlantica trails below us in Women's Group C.

Day -1's Conclusion
Let us be brief on this one and reiterate. Our progress may be slump in most of the sports we were in, but at least it's more than not participating in any parts of the Summer Esquarian Games. We also saw some victories for our countries and we can be sure proud of them now. Even if our start may have the good, it also have the bad and ugly, which overall makes our first progresses bittersweet.

Other ANN Reports

Esquarian Games: War Against Toloupum Fever
Efforts include Hazmat teams established in Hartly, Ainin
Gibberish King Marcus Refuses Re-Election
King says he will keep his "role as deputy president of the Conservative [P]arty"
Namorese Claims Existence of Luziycan-Pavonistadian Fever Plot
Author Pingjun details alleged plan to decimate country with virus

Comments

Please log-in or register to post comments...

VasilySloutein | ▲ 78 Upvotes | ▼ 2 Downvotes | X Report Offense
WHAY!!! The women's football team did kick some butt.

Sean Roberts | ▲ 47 Upvotes | ▼ 35 Downvotes | X Report Offense
I hope we would do better than what we did in Day -1... we wouldn't want Tarctica to be in the dumps, right?

15bouncerunity51 | ▲ 56 Upvotes | ▼ 1 Downvotes | X Report Offense
@Sean Roberts
Come on, man! Keep some team spirit! I am fully trusting that Tarctica will move forward in the Esquarian Games and surely we would kick some more butts from now.

by **Ainin** » Thu Aug 07, 2014 11:53 pm

Hartly 2014 Opening Ceremony
Ainin Airways Stadium, Hartly

"Her skyline ever shining, her aura a mystical crown surrounding her slender physique, Hartly was a sight to be seen." - Dr. Arthur Wellington Clark, Premier of Linack (2002-6)

As the stadium remained plunged in darkness, illuminated only by the thousands of flash cameras going off across the thousands upon thousands of rows of seats and by the weak glow of the backup lights, its silence only disturbed by the whispers of excited spectators, a deep and booming voice suddenly interrupted the lively chatter, imposing itself as it echoed across the stadium in the dark.

"Hate," it announced in a steady voice before stopping exactly shortly enough to allow the thunderous proclamation to echo through the building and back. "Rather than space... Is the final frontier."

As quickly as it came, the voice cut out and the stadium reverted to its previous state of silence. After a few moments, when the lively whispers began anew, systematic drum beats, soon joined by a string instrument, began playing a simple tune, getting progressively louder until all the crowd's attention was turned onto it. Shortly after, the sounds of waves crashing against the coast joined in and, in a heavily-choreographed move requiring consummate attention, the stadium's floodlights all turned on simultaneously and pointed down towards the field, where the usual track was replaced by a massive grassy ground with a large body of water on the side, and a sandy beach between the two. The stadium's massive roof soon faded into a projection of a sunny day sky.

Emerging from the water at exactly the moment that the primitive tune stopped and a classical orchestral piece replaced it, two groups of dancers, all clad in beige skinsuits, soon came in from both sides of the large field and, skipping as they headed towards the other side, soon crossed ways and, grabbing a partner from the opposing group, began fast-dancing together, as a man wearing a chainmail armour suit and wearing a crown began to rise, a platform underneath him ripping the floor from underneath him and rising with him as he waved the banner of the Saltic Empire, the first nation on the Aininian isles.

As the dance was coming to an end, the projection of the sky quickly dampened, turning into a stormy day, thunder booming on the stadium's audio system and an incredible amount of LED lights, mounted on every last armrest in the stadium, flashed white, simulating lighting. The fast-paced music faded away as a darker and slower tune took its place, its percussion dominating the orchestra. The dancers quickly changed to a new dance, artistically expressing a sad dance as the previous partners shoved each other to the ground in a slow and choreographed fashion. Meanwhile, the man on the platform was lowered as two more took his place, each carrying the flag of their kingdom, as they clashed their swords.

After several minutes of this combat, accompanied by an ever-increasing tempo in the palpitating music, and as the number of dancers still standing had been decimated, the man that had left the platform returned, and after a short duel, had defeated both men on it, and the macabre dance stopped, while the simulated storm also dissipated, revealing the bright tropical sun, while the music in the background changed to a High Middle Ages-era hymn with woodwinds taking centre stage, while the fallen dancers got up in a unified and smooth motion, and the happy uplifting dance begun again, but this time with the large light systems projecting the dark blue-white-green colours of the Glorious Confederation, the dance turning into a massive lively circle dance as the king and an actress dressed as the queen had a slow romantic dance in the middle.

It did not last, as suddenly, hundreds of men dressed in the Antelopian Namorese military uniforms of the era, wielding their swords, entered the field from all sides, dancing their way towards the dancers already their, their weapons in hand, as the music changed to a Namorese classical tune played on string instruments and the weather once again dampened into a dark thunderstorm. The initial dancers representing the Aininian people slowly withered onto the floor as the Namorese danced in victory, some pretending to kick the dancers on the floor to illustrate the oppression during the occupation. Soon enough, a single floodlight, albeit the most powerful by far in the stadium, shone its rays onto one of the oppressed persons, and he rose up, grabbing a musket that had been lowered from the ceiling by a string system. He pointed it upwards and his fellow dancers all rose and, also grabbing various weapon props that had been lowered from the top, engaged the Namorese in a mock battle, ending with the latter group running off the field in disarray.

At that moment, the storm clouds cleared and the Namorese traditional tune was replaced by an orchestra performing De l'Aube à l'Éternité, the Aininian national anthem, while the rest of the dancers also cleared the way and left the stage, as a ceremonial guard of Aininian Naval Fusiliers marched into the field and pulled up the Aininian tricolour onto the flagpole located there. On the very last note of the anthem ending, they saluted the flag and left as a new tune, a 19th century modernist song prominently featuring the guitar and saxophone, started playing. Motorised scale models of steam trains and factories, accompanied by people dressed in attire from the era, quickly entered the scene, as the escorting dancers did a lively turn of the century-era jig.

The sky then disappeared from the projection on the ceiling of the stadium, being replaced with an old black and white film stretched across the entire ceiling, featuring then-President Olivier Lapointe addressing a camera.

"Mes amis," he said as closed captions projected on the film read 'my friends'. "Notre pays est rené (our nation is reborn). Il y a un nouveau ordre dans ce monde, et il sera d'avant-garde (there is a new order in the world, and it will be a vanguard of the times)."

This was quickly followed by rock music appearing over the speakers, while an airplane model lowered from the ceiling made its way across the large room and many old-style cars and buses drove across the field, their occupants dancing inside. Over the next minutes, the vehicles that had entered first had made a trip around the field and exited, and the more recent cars to enter were more and more modern. As the final vehicles, a brand-new bus and a sports car, left the field, the LEDs across the rows of seats turned into the colours of the Aininian tricolour, with an animation of the waving flag covering the seats. As the final note of the rock song ended, the stadium was covered in a spectacularly timed fireworks display, followed after by a flyby of AF-4 fighter jets.

As thunderous applause continued to resound across the stadium, the large TV screens mounted at numerous locations on the stadium walls began to project President Steven Mann's face, as he stood on the balcony overlooking the main entrance.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he said as he waited for an unseen woman translate his words to French. "It is great honour and pleasure today that I stand before you to open the inaugural Summer Esquarian Games. I hope that this ceremony was as memorable to you as it was to me. Without any further ado, I declare the Hartly Esquarian Games, OPEN!"

Sustained applause started once again.

Soon began the oft-awaited Parade of Nations, as the crowd's eyes were fixed on the large door where the various teams would enter from and march across the stadium and then out.

About me · by **Luziyca** » Fri Aug 08, 2014 12:36 am

The Luziycan athletes have done well. Many have spent their day exploring Hartly and visiting its museums after having rehearsed their opening ceremony act.

Not for all athletes, though. For female archery, Dani Lierow got 8th place, Debra Smith reached 16th place, and Sarah Clark in 20th place. The Luzzies did poorly in the men's archery department though: Joseph Simeonov is in 21st place and Brian Cook in 28th place. Derek Linklater was at 52nd place.

For men's football, they did an okay job with Caucasia, scoring a goal 15 minutes in by forward Johannes Bjork, then 20 minutes, a Caucasian goal went in, before the Luzzies got an advantage of 2-1 when Johannes scored another goal 10 minutes in the second half. Towards the end of the match, with three minutes to go, a Caucasian players would score a goal, and extra time didn't break the tie, at 2-2. Thus, it was a draw.

But a shocking event came to the eighth rate women's football team, which was an oddity. Their first match against Bormeatri started with a Bormish player scoring a goal 15 minutes in, then 30 minutes in, ending the half with 2-0. But the Luzzies would make a comeback: shockingly. A midfielder, Margaret (Dionne, last name not really used) scored a goal 11 minutes in, then again 20 minutes in, drawing at the end of the 90 minutes. Extra time would result in Sarah Hope scoring a goal, enabling a Luziycan victory.

After a celebratory meal to congratulate the win against Bormeatria of the women's football team, they all retired for the night. Tomorrow morning, they were to begin.

The Luziycan delegation was ready for the big day. All were dressed in the traditional clothes of their ethnicity: Namorese wearing Namorese outfits (Chinese outfits, really), Luziycans wearing traditional Luziycan clothes (basically Slavic clothes), Inledans wearing their clothes (traditional Swedish clothes), Geads wearing their traditional clothes (traditional Geadish clothes, whatever that is), Lombardians wearing their clothes (Italian) and Azena wearing stereotypical African clothes. Referees will wear Western business suits, and some exceptions were made: Margaret is wearing the clothes of the scorinator goddess, perhaps because she is competing in the Luziycan team.

As the teams ahead of them went in order, the Luziycan delegation for the inaugural Esquarian Summer Games were prepared. Finally, after the team in front of them went, the Luziycan team started going. They were ordered to run to the other stadium, so Ballotine naturally made them conduct silly walks to "get them to the other end" faster. Each doing various types of silly walks, but at least they kept in a straight line. Clop I-My was exempt, and so was the signholder informing it was Luziyca. Thus, Clop I-My waved the flag.

At the same time, some Luziycans watching the opening ceremony rose and looked to the Luziycan flag, spontaneously beginning to sing Moya strana tis tebya. Due to the momentum, many Luziycans joined in singing the anthem of Luziyca, as loud as they could to try and make themselves heard. The others began booing at the Luziycans, but they didn't care. After the first verse, they all sat down, and the singing ended.

As for the national team, they kept up with their silly walks which became increasingly sillier, attracting lots of booing from the stands, but also laughter. Finally, as they reached their assigned area, they culminated it and ended it with Le Marche Futile.

In the stands, the LEGC President Joseph Ballotine was in his seat, laughing hysterically at how he ordered the Luziycan team to make fools of themselves by making them do the silly walk, which the team (naturally) didn't really like since they wanted to make themselves seem professional. He kept laughing and laughing until long after the team passed the stands, until after 20 minutes of continuous laughter, he died in his seat. If that was his last wish, mission accomplished.

by **Namor** » Fri Aug 08, 2014 5:16 am

The Namorese team is kicking off the games with a meh start. For one, they didn't get any medal yet, and the Orientalians beat them to it in women's archery. But to them, the show hasn't started yet, so they're willing to be patient for now. The men's football team was literally killed by the Unolians, 5-0, and the women's team lost 0-1 to Rutuba. Not like anyone didn't expect that, though, Namor was never good in football. None of the archers were even close to 10th place.

Opening Ceremony
Ainin Airways Stadium, Hartly

It was all about to begin; the opening ceremony will formally start the inaugural Hartly Games. The Namorese team were awed by the performance of Ainin's history, and were clapping and nodding in approval as the performance showed the Glorious Confederation, the time when the Aininians were first independent.

But then they saw what they were dreading. Men dressed in imperial uniforms holding swords entered the field, dancing the "dance of oppression," kicking the natives. To make things more...sensitive, there was a combination of traditional Namorese music and the weather turned into a dark thunderstorm. The dancers representing the Aininian natives first fell to the floor, representing oppression under the Namorese, before rising up and chasing the Namorese out.

However long that scene lasted, the Namorese audience didn't like it. Some booed and jeered, but the athletes stayed silent. In one corner, the PTH cameramen realized that what they were filming, and didn't know what to do. The narrator for PTH, who also saw what was going on, decided to do something really intelligent.

"It looks like...this dance portrays a war between Ainin's...native tribes. The...the dancers you see entering are Aininian natives who are oppressing other rival Aininian tribes, but in the end the oppressed tribes...prevail," he said. He had stammered, but which narrator hasn't in his/her career?

After that, Ainin was already an independent country, and the national anthem was sung, President Mann said "let the games begin," and the parade of nations began.

Parade of Nations

It was time for the Namorese team to walk in for the parade of nations. The athletes were wearing formal police uniforms, carefully designed and all in blue. The athletes were all wearing dress shoes. Some expected their march to be more formal than last time, when the flag bearer was dancing around like crazy, but of course they had something up their sleeves.

Standing in the front of the procession, swimmer Youja Kana held the Gukchi, the national flag. Looking at the flag, Kana couldn't feel more proud to represent her country.

"Time to go," whispered one person.

"Do I look...well?" Kana whispered back, making sure there was nothing wrong with her appearance when she marched in.

"Yes. Go, go!"

So they did. The strong Namorese team, with way more athletes than last time, marched in, Kana leading the whole thing. As they did, some of the athletes finally managed to pull off what they wanted to do. They pulled out large signs reading "Namor (English for Namor)," and "Намора (Namora; Namorese for Namor)." They all cheered, and chanted in unison:

NA-MO-RA! NA-MO-RA!
NO-LA HAI! NA-MO-RA!
NO-LA HAI! NUM-BER ONE!
NO-LA HA! NA-MO-RA!

(Namor! Namor!
We are Namor!
We are number one!
We are Namor!)

"Намора, Намора wансе (Long live, long live Namor)!" one athlete shouted.

"Нантаи си Намора! (Nantai is Namor)!" another hollered, making sure the stadium could hear. He repeated that over and over before someone told him that it was enough and he should cut it off.

Kana chanted along as well, while giggling from within. She had seen the Aininians' performance and their portrayal of their War of Independence. Perhaps this was the proper and respectful rebuttal, as some might put it. But as she walked she made sure she didn't do anything crazy.

They kept chanting that, and the Namorese audience applauded, cheered and went wild.

President-General Fu Wen, who was looking at the opening ceremony with his assistants, chuckled. He was confident that whatever the Namorese team pulled off, it was way better than what the Luziycans or the Aininians did.

by **Vyvland** » Fri Aug 08, 2014 6:39 am

Live coverage of the Games, direct from Hartly
Vyvluder Helse English Γαυδσκ Наморайин Nevan Nevůnhulír

Opening ceremony: Team Vyvland enter in style

The Vyvlander team enter the Ainin Airways Stadium
for tonight's opening ceremony why did i spend so long doctoring this photo

Vyvland's 234-strong delegation to Hartly arrived into a spectacular opening ceremony this evening, clad in blue and pink jerseys under the command of flag-bearer Ada Oydsjri (swimming).

The opening ceremony, which detailed Ainin's history in dance and graphical form, has been well received. Praise has centred on the all-inclusiveness of the stadium in the ceremony and its use of symbolism and sound.

Social media has been alive with commentary about the opening ceremony. Particularly noteworthy was the scene in which Namorese soldiers were portrayed oppressing Aininians, a reference to the 1795 Summer of Discontent protests; this part of the play was criticised by many in Namor, despite the antiquity of its subject matter. Others have noticed the odd juxtaposition between dancing and wars.

Views on the team's pink-and-blue outfits have been mixed. De Kronikel fashion editor Pit Zeeper praised the colours as 'bold' and 'memorable', although added that the pink was 'a touch too gaudy and slightly princess-like'. Meanwhile, self-styled fashion 'expert' for Entwerd Jolande Jin-Mortenson desribed the pink-and-blue colour scheme as 'overtly childish with more than a hint of patriarchal gender stereotypes'. Others have criticised the lack of any traditional Vyvlander dress.

The Disabled Society of Vyvland have praised the Vyvlander team's disabled athletes and trainers being given a prominent position in the parade. Among them was shooter Pajrija Niyaas, 24, who described her chance to compete in the Esquarian Games as 'a dream come true'.

Day -1: Good start for Vyvland in football and archery

Men's and women's archery and women's football on the inventively-termed 'Day -1' appeared to go fairly well for Vyvland, perhaps boding well for the rest of the Games.

Football
Vyvland - as one of the favourites for both of the two football medals on offer - met their expectations on the first day of play. Following the men's team win in the Coupe d'Esquarium, Vyvland's women wanted to show that they're capable of success too. Fortunately, with a 3-4 win over Orientalia, they've proven this to be to some extent true, although many hopefuls were hoping for a greater margin of victory over the unrenowned Orientalian team. The Vyvlander women now sit second out of six in Group D's table behind Unolia (although with only one matchday's play, all is likely to change soon).

Archery
Six Vyvlanders competed in today's archery events, three women and three men. Unfortunately, Dijrek Jung (placed 35th) and Tomas Vuc (placed 49th) missed the cutoff (between 32nd and 33rd place) to advance into the next round of the men's archery, although Chrisdjan Brayeer was placed joint fourteenth. Vyvland's female archers had a more successful day, with Katja Brayeer (sister of Chrisdjan) being placed sixth and thus having a tangible chance of a medal. Young-but-promising twelfth-placed Marja Stīgr should also be happy with her performance today, which bodes well for the next round. Team-mate Margret Woingreur missed the cut by just three places, coming 35th. Overall, Vyvland's national team for archery are coming sixth, just five points behind Luziyca's. Vyvland's head coach for archery, Frigi Hufsmanr, congratulated the team on their 'encouraging' first performance.

by **Atlantia Creek** » Fri Aug 08, 2014 7:02 am

The athletes marched into the Ainin Airways Stadium in style. Atlantia Creek led the nations in style and being one of the smallest delegations, was one of the most organized ones of them all. Most of the athletes were proud to be representing their nations in the Esquarian Games.

by **Masseau** » Fri Aug 08, 2014 7:06 am

^{The Masseau Post}

"The freshest and finest news in all of Masseau"

The Hartly Games Roundup: Day -1
Written by Matthew Page, August 3rd, 2014

HARTLY, AININ - Even though it was Day -1, the Hartly Games officially started in Hartly, Ainin. A wonderful ceremony was shown by the Aininians, along with a great march from the Namorese. However, some marches were not as magnificent, and some were just awful. However, I think that Masseau's march was indeed not a bad march. Led by the Men's Water Polo team, the Masseans marched in a way that from a bird's eye view -- You could read the formation, and it read, "Go Masseau!". It was clever, very clever indeed. Now, we'll get you started on the progress for Masseau on Day -1.

Progress was not made easily by the Masseans, but it sure was made.

As far women's archery, the three women did not qualify for the next round of archery, placing 37th, 47th, and 57th. When we talked to Roxanne Moran, who finished just outside the cut at thirty-seventh place, here's what she had to say about her weak and disappointing performance today. "Well, I shot just terribly. No excuses. It's hard to leave so early from the Games, but I should have performed better. Thanks." However, Masseau had a weak archery team, so we're not angry about the loss of the the three archers.

Men's archery, another weak sport in the Massean delegation, performed just as weak as expected, not qualifying at all into the top 32. Joey Stevens finished 41st, Gerardo Wise 51st, and Hugh Hamton finishing the lowest out of the three Massean competitors at 54th. We talked to Hugh Hampton after his competition, and here's what he had to say: "Tooooooo be completely fair-fair, I was drunnnkkk, so yeah... uhhh.. I don't feel righttttt.." Tough day for him.

However, there was one bright spot today, and those were the footballers of Masseau. After being down one to zilch to Britanno, Kent Graham scored a goal from the left side of the box just before half-time. And with that, Masseau scored again at the seventy-eight minute, proving joy for football fanatics everywhere in Masseau, as Masseau just barely prevailed over Britanno. However, the women's team allowed five goals against Iglesantis, who allowed only one goal as the women were crushed by Iglesantis.

Progress Is being made towards a medal in the games, And that's all that everyone wants. If someone can get a medal, than Masseau will be crying tears of joy. So, we'll see who can achieve the medal first for Masseau, then we'll celebrate!

1st Summer Esquarian Games [IC/Everything | Esq. only]

1st Summer Esquarian Games [IC/Everything | Esq. only]

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