Let the Games Begin . . . .
The 2011 Friendship Games will begin with opening ceremonies on Thursday, Nov. 10 at 8:20 a.m. in the coliseum of the American Cooperative School in La Paz, and continue through the afternoon of Saturday, Nov. 12.
Four Bolivian schools united by the fact that each has its roots in an institution that was at one time popularly known as the "American School" in its city, will participate. They include two schools from Cochabamba -- American International School Bolivia (AISB) and Cochabamba Cooperative School (CCS) -- together with one from Santa Cruz -- Santa Cruz Cooperative School (SCCS)-- and the host school -- American Cooperative School (ACS) of La Paz.
Following the Opening Ceremonies the four schools will conduct a round robin competition in girls soccer, boys soccer, girls volleyball and boys volleyball, with each team playing each of the other schools in the course of twenty-four separate contests to be held Thursday and Friday.
On Saturday, the final day of the competition, the schools with the best records will meet in the championship games. Consolation games to determine third and fourth places will also be played.
The closing ceremonies will also include a cheerleading exhibition in which squads from each of the four schools make presentations beginning at 2 p.m..
The Games, which were once an annual event, have been played less regularly in recent years for a variety of reasons. They were last held in Santa Cruz in 2009, and were dominated that year by the home team.
