How to begin your own JCLegacy:
by a certified JCLegend
Every true Certamen player has heard the phrase, “Certamen is a bloodsport,” but few truly know what it means to give up their body and shed their blood for Certamen. In 2015 – back in my early years before I became THE JCLegend - I had studied all summer and had made Florida’s Novice State Certamen team as the mythologian.
That year, Nationals was at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. My team had a grueling first three preliminary matches and we ended up entering the semi-finals as the 5th seed which was certainly well below where we had hoped to be at that point. In the semi-finals, however, we managed to easily defeat a 2nd seeded Texas and an 8th seeded Georgia 185-100-30.
Well, we decided Thursday night that we would wake up early and have breakfast around 7:00 AM in order to begin practicing around 8:00 for finals. Well, as luck would have it, I must’ve turned my alarm off and woke up right at 8:00, just when we were supposed to begin practice. In a panic I called my coach and told him what had happened. He kindly told me to calm down and have breakfast anyways.
Well of course I still wanted to hurry so that I could get there as fast as possible to begin practice, but as I ran to the mess hall, I tripped on the pavement and skinned my shoulder terribly.
Although at the time, it hurt, it’s kind of funny looking back on it because a couple girls walking by stopped, horrified, and asked if I was okay. I was in such a rush (and let’s face it, my pride was what was truly injured) that I said, “Yeah I’m fine.” and kept on running.
I still remember sitting in Certamen practice that day with a paper towel under my shirt on the wound and how much that sucker hurt!
So, to all the young Certamen players out there, you truly haven’t played Certamen until you’ve played a National Finals with a bleeding Certamen-related wound. More than three years later, I still have the scar on my shoulder, and I can most definitely call Certamen a bloodsport.
page 34