We Are Superman

I have always thought that everyone has a sport or activity in which they could be world-class, but sometimes we haven’t tried it and discovered which one it is. Maybe it’s karate or curling or backgammon. Or as I’ve told kids I’ve coached in track that to get ahead, rather than run a common event like the 100 meters, try an event that few others do like the pole vault, triple jump, or 300-meter hurdles. Ultramarathoning is obviously a niche sport, as is an Olympic sport I’ve always liked, fencing. My interest goes back to my days as a sportswriter for the University of Pennsylvania student newspaper. You get assigned to cover so-called minor sports as a freshman, and one team I drew was the Penn fencing team. I learned quickly to admire both the skills and endurance of some of the best fencers in the NCAA. So even after I worked my way up the ladder to reporting on the basketball and football teams, I asked to still cover the fencing team, and even became something of a de facto team manager. Later, when Denver hosted the 1989 World Fencing Championships, I was named press liaison between the organization and journalists who had come from around the globe to cover the event. Today, I do alumni interviews for applicants to Penn, and I had the opportunity to chat with a dynamic local high school senior named Patrick Li, who I found out has fenced since he was in 4th-grade. Patrick has discovered the benefits of pushing himself to excel and realized the benefits of having a supportive community around him. In turn, Patrick has been generously giving back to expose kids and disabled individuals to the sport, so they can enjoy it as much as he has. I’m impressed with how much this young man, who hopes to major in behavioral economics in college, is willing to put in to help others. Along the way in this chat, you’ll also learn a bit about this sport they call “physical chess,” and hopefully have some appreciation if you see it on TV during the 2028 Olympics in L.A. Maybe go to a local fencing club and find out for yourself if it could be your own gold medal sport!

Patrick Li
[email protected]
720-220-6495
Instagram @patrick__li__

Bill Stahl
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Facebook Bill Stahl
Instagram and Threads @stahlor and @coachstahl
YouTube We Are Superman Podcast