Armenia's Olympic Team heads to Beijing with high hopes

16 The Armenian Reporter | August 2, 2008CommunityParticipants in the 2007 Friendship GamesGlendale Friendship Games provide commonground for communityEvent celebratesdiversity, unity, andsportsmanshipby Anna MargaryanGLENDALE, Calif. – Sports isthe universal language of choice forthe Homenetmen Glendale AraratChapter as it helps unite the Glendalecommunity with its third annualGlendale Friendship Games.To be held at Glendale High Schoolon October 18 and 19, the event isfast becoming a tradition in Glendale,as hundreds of athletes anda slew of supportive friends andfamily members come together fortwo days of friendly competition, alifetime of memories, and a lastingsense of community solidarity.The goal of the Friendship Games,the brainchild of the Ararat ChapterBoard of Directors, is twofold.It seeks to promote interest insports and, more importantly, fosterunity and harmony within thecommunity.“I think our obligation goes beyondour members,” said AraratChapter Board of Directors Vice-Chair Serge Grakasian, commentingon the chapter’s motivationin establishing the games in 2006.“We would love to promote sportsto and for our kids and members,but as a community organizationI think we are obligated to providesome service to the community atlarge,” Grakasian continued. “It’sgood for us to not only get involvedin the Armenian community, butbeyond it. We are part of the city.”Although sports are the mediumthat draws Glendale residents tothe Friendship Games, it is thecombination of kinship, familial atmosphere,and desire to celebratediversity that has kept them comingback for three years.Pictures really are worth a thousandwords. Photographs of the2006 and 2007 games show a sea ofblue, white, and gold as individualsof all ages and backgrounds weartheir Ararat logo T-shirts and teamcolors with pride, humility, andfriendship.The Friendship Games may notbe the Olympics, but even in theirinfancy they have managed tocapture the hearts and draw thetalents of over 3,000 Glendale residentsand over 850 athletes, whocame to watch and participate insix different sports during the 2006and 2007 events.With an affordable participationfee of $20 per player and no admissionfee, the Friendship Gamesoffer Glendale residents, wearyof their daily routines and hecticlifestyles, an interactive family experiencewhere the competition isfriendly, diversity is welcomed, andharmony is the order of the day.Homenetmen has thought ofevery angle to ensure that sportsthat draw a respectably smaller,but dedicated, following than moremainstream sports are showcasedat the Friendship Games. Thisyear’s lineup of sports includesrhythmic gymnastics, table tennis,basketball, volleyball, soccer, tennis,and chess. While some of thesesports are among the most popularin the world, others – such asrhythmic gymnastics, table tennis,and chess – aren’t as widely playedor showcased.For avid table tennis players andfans, the Organizing Committeehas applied for a sanction so thatindividuals interested in participatingin an official table tennis matchand improving their ranking withinthat sport can try their hand at theFriendship Games.“We’ve tried to have a good mixof team sports and individualsports, and the ones that we haveare the ones that we think willgive more people the capability tocome and participate,” said OrganizingCommittee Co-Chair EdwinMoossaian.While chess may be the ultimatechallenge for a new generation ofaspiring Bobby Fishers or GaryKasparovs, one of the highlightsof the Friendship Games continuesto be soccer. At least nine differentsoccer groups, including aysoRegion 88 and the Crescenta ValleySoccer Club, will battle it outthis year for the coveted first- andsecond-place medals. However, dueto time and space constraints, theinitial soccer tournaments will beheld at the Ararat Center, beginningin late September, and run forapproximately four to five weeks.Young AmbassadorsThe games may be the main attraction,but it is the group of teensbehind the promotion of the eventthat is drawing much of the attentionthis year. The OrganizingCommittee has taken a fresh approachto marketing the FriendshipGames by utilizing a group ofsix high-school students, knownas the Young Ambassadors, to promotethe event at a grassroots level.Led by athlete and soccer coach AniGhazikhanian, the Young Ambassadorsspread the word at localschool and athletic events, in additionto appealing to the GlendaleCity Council and Glendale UnifiedSchool District for endorsements.Ghazikhanian has already recruitedsix soccer teams and the GlendaleHigh School tennis team to participatein the upcoming FriendshipGames.“We have a different strategy toattract people to the games,” saidArlet Davoodian, a member ofthe Ararat Chapter’s Public RelationsCommittee. “We have Aniand her friends going to differentlocations and promoting thegames, whereas in the past it wasjust the committee members andflyers. Hopefully the turnout willbe much better this year becauseour strategies and marketing havetotally changed.”Grakasian is optimistic aboutthis dynamic publicity tactic. Hebelieves that it will change the faceof the games by generating unprecedentedawareness and interestwithin the larger community.“I hope it will work and I thinkthat it’s working because morepeople will know about the games,”an enthusiastic Grakasian said. “Atleast the word is out. We want toget good participation for the sakeof participation, not for our sake.If the community is involved and[people] at least come and watch,then it’s also a positive thing.”The Friendship Games have notonly become a fixture among localArmenians, but are increasinglygaining a foothold within the largerand more diverse Glendale communityand surrounding areas.Ironing out the detailsThe scene at the games – hundredsof cheering spectators, bright-eyedkids, and talented young athletespursuing big sports dreams andreveling in the spotlight – mightmake one almost forget that thereis extensive behind-the-sceneswork involved in the organizationof such a big event. The process germinateswithin the confines of theArarat Center conference room inlate February or early March, whenthe design of the games is laid outand continues to be improved uponand fine-tuned for the next sevento eight months. The task at handmay seem arduous, but membersof the Organizing Committee seemto view it as a labor of love thathelps bring their dream of communitysolidarity to fruition. TheFriendship Games are a gift theArarat Chapter has been giving thecity for the past three years, withno strings attached.If a recent Organizing Committeemeeting is any indication of theatmosphere that will pervade theFriendship Games in October, thenthe games promise to be thoroughlyengaging, light-hearted, and fun.Sitting around the conferencetable with four of the five Committeemembers – Grakasian, co-chairsMoossaian and Sako Hemelian,junior member Ghazikhanian, andunofficial member Arlet Davoodian– it’s evident that there is a lot ofheart, commitment, camaraderie,and dedication in the room, not tomention a great deal of laughter. Ifthere’s a unanimous message thatresonates here, it is that the committeeand the Friendship Gamesalike welcome involvement from allcommunity members.The scene at the Ararat Center todayresembles that which one willlikely find at the games in October,with staff members bustling backand forth, young athletes outfittedin various forms of athletic dressgoing to and from practice, andsupportive parents at their kids’side.Every aspect of the games is designedto meet the needs and interestsof the community and enjoysa great deal of support from cityorganizations and local corporations.The Friendship Games enjoythe assistance of the Glendale UnifiedSchool District and the City ofGlendale as well as sponsorshipsby Wells Fargo, the Glendale NewsPress, Charter Communications,Pacific BMW, and other big-namedonors.Even the closing ceremonieshave become a spectacle, withcity officials, members of theschool district, and Ararat-Chaptermembers donning basketballuniforms to play in a friendly, butequally competitive, game of basketball.“Come play,” Ghazikhanian candidlysuggested to me, ignitinga spark of good-natured laughterthroughout the room, when Iasked for her closing commentson the Friendship Games. Thoughshort and sweet, the words of theactive teen – who rushes fromcommittee meeting to soccerpractice before resuming her recruitingduties at Crescenta ValleyHigh School – encompass thelarger goals of the OrganizingCommittee because they encourageGlendale’s diverse populationto set aside its differences and givein to the adrenaline-fueled exhilarationof playing sports and beingspectators.The Glendale Friendship Gamesare truly a community affair. Fortwo days in October, Glendalewill become blind to race, class,and ethnicity, and embrace harmonyborn out of a shared loveof sports.The Glendale Friendship GamesOrganizing Committee has establisheda website, araratgfg.com,where individuals and teams interestedin participating in the eventcan obtain registration forms anddetailed information.