The highlight of my New Year’s Day was playing basketball with Oliver and some TIS alumni and current players. The Open Gym attracted eight players, including Ollie’s former classmate, Mukhammed. I really enjoy watching Oliver compete in sports and after his Veteran’s Day attendance of the Milwaukee Bucks game last month, he is into basketball. He played well and his team won 4-3 in a seven-game series of games. I played 1-on-1 against Oliver and a short time, 3-on-3 while we were waiting for everyone to arrive. I was the referee of the full-court games. At my age, I try not to play too many team sports to avoid injury.
Of course, we needed to check out Oliver’s soccer championship banners hanging on the gym walls and his Junior Varsity Cross-Country Running Record on a bulletin board in the foyer. He completed the cross-country Junior Varisty Race at the Tashkent Botanical Gardens in 17:45 in November of 2020. His soccer teams were the greatest in school history with back-to-back Central Asian Soccer Classic championships in 2022 and 2023. With us leaving Tashkent in June, this will likely be the last time Oliver visits Tashkent and the school.
I get a lot of satisfaction from coaching sports, and it was so nice to interact with some of my current and former players during Winter Break.
It was a cold but thankfully dry New Year’s Day. I did yoga in the morning and explored the Olympic Park on bicycle in the afternoon. The complex was originally scheduled to host the Asian Games in September, but it was not ready. It is still not open to the public, but most of the sports facilities are completed. There is a new road around the complex and the new airport. As with other areas of Tashkent, the growth and development of residential and business infrastructure make the place unrecognizable. Thanks to the New Year’s Day holiday, there were hardly any cars at all, and I had a fantastic and fast 21-kilometer bike ride. I hope it opens to the public in the spring before I leave.
Bill's Blog 