Jellyneo

2013 Altador Cup Tournament

Press Tour

Below is an archive of the 2013 Press Tour blurbs. This year was a slightly different format than other years, with long stories encompassing multiple teams.

This text is adapted from the detailed archive at Altador Cup Fantasy!

May 13: Land and Sea

It's taken months of preparation, but the Colosseum has finally been made ready for the arrival of Altador Cup VIII. Fans from all over the globe gathered outside the historic landmark starting early this morning, straining their eyes in eager anticipation of which teams' bus would be the first to show. An audible gasp rose from the crowd as Team Altador's logo rolled into view, as AD has traditionally been one of the last to arrive. The surprise quickly turned to feverish speculation among the gathered spectators as to the reason for the early move from their local training facility, but King Altador remained tight-lipped about his strategy during the routine press conference, only saying that he felt his team's loyal fans deserved a chance to meet their favourite players before the upcoming Tournament overshadowed all else.

Team Krawk Island arrived close on AD's heels, and a rousing ovation went up from KI's fans when it was discovered that retired player "Dasher" Soley had been able to make the trip to Altador with the team this year. "He's just a legend in Yooyuball," one young Shoyru gushed. "Even after all this time, we want him to know that we haven't forgotten him, and how much we appreciate everything he's done for our team." Apparently still stung from an unpleasant interview during the off-season, KI's coach chose not to hold the traditional press conference, but he did allow reporters to speak with the players after they got settled into their team locker rooms. "It's been an interesting off-season, to say the least," Feldon "Dinksy" Collibridge commented to one reporter while lacing up for the first team practice. "There's been all kinds of pressure to get back on the podium this year, and Coach is determined that we're not going to lose to a last-place team three seasons in a row, so we've been training like crazy for months now. It's kind of a relief to get to Altador, since we're finally going to get to use everything we've been working on."

The halls of the Colosseum, now still and empty, lie eagerly awaiting the rush of fans anxious to see their favourite teams battle it out in the biggest event of the year. The countdown to Altador Cup VIII has begun!

May 14: Sun and Shade

It's always a spectacle when a team arrives at the Colosseum, but Mystery Island brought a whole new meaning to 'making an entrance' when their ship docked in Altador Port earlier today. It appeared as though half of the island had made the trip with the team, as the packed boat was full near to bursting with both fans and MI personnel. The excitement among the passengers, already at a high level from the first sighting of land nearly a half hour prior, reached a fever pitch as the gangplank was lowered, and the flood of passengers from the ship turned into an impromptu parade complete with dancing and musical accompaniment as they escorted their team from the docks all the way to the Colosseum. "That was quite a welcome," forward Teylor Nix laughed during the team press conference. "In a way, it's rather humbling to think of all of the hopes our fans have pinned on us this year. I'm hoping to prove that their confidence is not unfounded."

Team Haunted Woods' arrival was much more sedate, though their fans were no less joyful to greet them. Before heading to the media room for their first press conference, the players took some time to chat with fans and sign autographs, and "Brains" Mortigan even posed for a few pictures until Zo Junior dragged the Usul away. The first half of HW's press conference was mostly the owner talking about his hopes for ACVIII, and his last act before turning over the podium was to introduce the new head coach he'd hired during the offseason. To no one's surprise, the new HC was the former offensive coordinator of Team Kreludor, and one of the hottest coaching prospects coming out of ACVII. The Koi discussed briefly some of his plans on the offensive side of the Yooyuball, then introduced the rest of the new coaching staff, many of whom were top assistant coaches and trainers from around the league. After a few more questions, HW's owner abruptly ended the press conference, stating that he wished to give his team a rest after the long journey from the Haunted Woods, but promised one-on-one interviews with each of his players before the Cup began.

There's nearly three weeks left to go before the annual Tournament begins, but the anticipation is already building in the city of Altador. Inns and restaurants are packed to near capacity, and the greens outside of the Colosseum are slowly being covered by a swelling crowd of festively bedecked fans.

May 15: Floating High and Low

Two more of last year's top eight arrived at the Colosseum today, with Team Kiko Lake being the first to show around noon. After the obligatory meet-and-greet with fans and a short Q & A session with reporters, KL went straight from the locker rooms to the training fields. "The team's ownership has been concerned about the late-season problems we've had recently," Holbie Pinnock explained to reporters following the first set of cone drills. "The atmospheric pressure here in Altador is slightly lower than that of Kiko Lake, and our coach has the theory that we need to spend more time training in the Colosseum in order to be fully adjusted once the Cup finally rolls around." KL's head coach confirmed the statement later in the evening, and added that they planned to spend the first week experimenting with different styles of YYB equipment, to see which ones were best suited for the Kikos' unique traction issues.

The sun had nearly set by the time Team Darigan Citadel showed up, and due to the late hour it was decided that only the head coach and GM would attend the press conference. Most of the questions revolved around last season's unprecedented quadruple battle with KD, though there were a few reporters who brought up rumors of a player trade, which the head coach managed to artfully dodge. The General Manager also gave a short statement at the end of the press conference, thanking the Altador Cup Planning Committee for hearing the team's grievances and introducing a new line of plushie Darigan Yooyus wearing the official DC Yooyuball jersey. As for the players, they had planned to spend the night settling in to their locker rooms, until HW's Wan Dirx mentioned that a local group of fans held a rally to support DC every night outside of the Hall of Heroes. After a brief discussion, the entire team decided to make the trip through Altador, and the delighted fans got the chance to hang out with their favourite players and chat about Yooyuball until the wee hours of the morning.

With a full one-third of all teams now in the Colosseum, the once-lifeless stadium is slowly being filled with the sound of laughter and the echo of dropped slushies and slung Yooyuballs.

May 16: Sand and Rock

Every team comes to the Altador Cup looking to gain some kind of advantage over the rest of the field, and today's new arrivals are no exception. For months there have been ongoing rumors of some kind of research going on in Lost Desert's state-of-the-art training facility, and the results of that research were unveiled today outside of the Colosseum. Standing on a raised platform built specially for the occasion, LD's General Manager proudly held up a brand new Yooyuball sling for the gathered crowd to admire. "This sling is the results of nearly two years' worth of research," she told the onlookers_ "And is a testament to the heights we can achieve when the best and brightest from each land come together to work towards a common goal. Scholars from Brightvale, scientists from Virtupets and even our own players labored to create this masterpiece of engineering, and thanks to their efforts we've come up with a design which is lighter, more aerodynamic, and even more efficient at transmitting the force from a player's arm into the Yooyuball. We have every confidence that this new sling is going to revolutionize the game." An immediate buzz went up from the crowd in response to the news, and the gathered media, in their rush to be the first to get reactions from the other teams, completely forgot about the scheduled interview with LD's Leera Heggle, which was eventually postponed for a later date.

Team Shenkuu, also looking for a leg up on the competition, decided on a slightly different approach. It all started when defender Antola Maeir joked that reason for the team's slump was because the Colosseum was the one place they hadn't climbed. Mirsha Grelinek, overhearing the comment, took it as a personal challenge and pretty soon a race was on between her and goalie Xana DiLanche to see which one could be the first to conquer the Colosseum. Within minutes the crowd outside swelled to nearly triple the size, with many of the fans taking bets as to which player would be the first to reach the top. Members of the Altador Cup Planning Committee, alerted by the ruckus, attempted to put a stop to the proceedings, but unfortunately for them neither player could hear their shouts over the general din, and the ACPC was reduced to trying to look dignified while scrambling to avoid the falling debris coming from above. After nearly an hour of climbing, Mirsha Grelinek finally reached the top, and she laughed later on that Shenkuu was bound to win now, since no other team could claim that they had literally risen above the competition.

With more and more teams arriving each day, the lighthearted atmosphere in the Colosseum is slowly giving way to an intense anticipation of events to come. Little more than two weeks remain before the start of Altador Cup VIII.

May 17: Feathers and Caps

For most teams, the first order of business after settling in to the Colosseum is to get right down to YYB practice, but this was not the case with today's most recent arrivals. "We thought it was time to mix things up a little!" Roo Island captain Lilo Blumario shouted to reporters over the noise of Clutch Billaban and Fenny Vail competing to see which one could be the loudest. "So often the fun of the Altador Cup gets buried under all the work we put into it, so we decided to relax and enjoy some of the side games this time around!" Realizing the futility of trying to talk in that situation, he led the media to a quieter area of the practice field, where they spent some time discussing team strategy while watching Jair Tollet kick Yooyuballs at a poor assistant coach that had been dressed up in a Jelly Chia costume. The interview came to a sudden halt when reporters were forced to dive to the ground to escape a barrage of flying Oranella Slushies, one of which the agile Blumaroo plucked out of the air for himself before running for cover.

Team Faerieland also sat out their first day of practice in the Colosseum, albeit for very different reasons. When the team bus rolled up outside of the huge amphitheater, fans were shocked to see not one but two FL players sporting obvious injuries. "It was all a problem of miscommunication," defender Delma Harrence said of her wing brace. "We were running a passing drill, and both Elbin and I thought we were supposed to be the ones that Kakoni would throw to." "It was just a mess of feathers and fur," Ciona Broan interjected, shaking her head. "Frankly, we were lucky that none of the injuries were severe." Elbin Kroe, due to his eye injury, was not able to attend the press conference, but the head coach confirmed that both players were expected to be well enough to start practice within the week, and back up to 100% in time for the Tournament.

Over half of the teams have now arrived in Altador, but a few of the top names are still noticeably absent. With the Colosseum unofficially closed until Monday, the remaining teams will have less than two weeks to be fully prepared in time for the start of Altador Cup VIII.

May 20: Sparkle and Shine

It's been over a week since the official opening of the Colosseum for Altador Cup VIII, but it wasn't until today that the winners of last year's AC finally arrived. When asked about the reason for the delay, especially since the team's strategy for ACVII had been to make the transition to Neopia early, Kreludor forward Zenor Kevix responded with a sheepish grin; "Well, we had....... other things pressing on our minds this year." When questioned further, the Grundo gave a sigh and finally explained; "To be honest, the whole team ended up getting involved in the battle for the Obelisk a little while ago. It wouldn't have been a problem, except I joined the Red Erisim, Coco and Jurin went with the Sway, Derlyn chose the Awakened, and Qlydae fought for the Brute Squad. Being with different factions caused a huge split among the team, especially since Coco and Jurin wouldn't stop doing their victory dance after their side won," he added with a glare. "Things got so bad that our practices were being affected," he continued, "So our coach decided it would be best if we stayed on Kreludor until everyone cooled down a little." In what will no doubt be a huge sigh of relief for KD fans, all five members of the squad answered to the affirmative when asked if things were finally back to normal, though it should be noted that Coco Metrone brought along a Handmade Duchess Plushie to keep in the team's locker room.

The moon had long risen over Altador by the time the ship carrying Team Terror Mountain docked in the harbor. One by one, the weary players disembarked from a boat which looked as though it had been in a prolonged battle with a giant sea squid. "It's starting to feel like the weather has it out for us this year," goalie Minae Mitora told a reporter who happened to be at the docks looking for colour commentary to include in his next article. "Our plan was to be here early this year, so we set sail from a port just outside of Tyrannia nearly two weeks ago." She went on to describe the massive hurricane which blew up when the ship was only a few hours out. "The captain tried to make it back to land, but it was no use. We eventually wound up in a lee behind Lutari Island, where we were forced to ride out the storm for almost five days until the winds had subsided enough for us to set out again." The Chia, apparently exhausted just in the telling of the story, trudged off towards the Colosseum, and her teammate Rinok Fitel picked up where she left off. "We had to stop several times to make critical repairs to the ship," he said, "And the food and water ran so low these last few days that everyone went on emergency rations. At this rate, we wouldn't be surprised to see an earthquake or tornado heading our way."

With a full two-thirds of the teams reporting for duty, the Colosseum has begun to ring with the sounds of Yooyuball at all times of the day and night. Fans from all over Neopia continue to stream into Altador, eagerly anticipating the friendly battles and fierce rivalries in the biggest sporting event of the year.

May 21: Science and Math

As the entry period for ACVIII gradually draws to a close, the last remaining teams continue to slowly trickle into Altador. The first such team to arrive today was Team Brightvale, and they showed up at the Colosseum with a pair of young neopets in tow. "A lot of teams have to hold raffles to make enough neopoints to travel to Altador every year," team captain Montecito told reporters as they watched the Acaras take turns trying to kick a Yooyuball past goalie Orie Dinelle. "Since all of our expenses are covered by King Hagan, we decided to hold a charity auction instead." He went on to talk about the various gifts donated by the team, from signed game jerseys to caps bearing the Brightvale logo, and even a pastoral scene painted by forward Kayn Hireck. "You'd never guess it by looking at him, but he's really quite talented. Anyway," he continued, "All of the winning bids were put into a grand prize drawing, and the winners of that drawing got the opportunity to travel with the team to ACVIII." After the twin Acaras exhausted themselves, the gathered media finally got the chance to ask them how they felt about being with the team for the entire Tournament, and the excited neopets spent the better part of an hour babbling about being in the BV locker rooms and being able to watch every match from the sidelines until an assistant coach showed up and dragged them away, much to the reporters' relief.

It was a rough season for the champs of ACVI last year, and this season hasn't started out much better. "Someone spilled an entire can of Achyfi on our spaceship's control panel just as we were entering an asteroid belt," Virtupets defender Sela Pretore grumbled during the team's press conference. "Thankfully, our ship was outfitted with a manual override, so the captain was able to guide us through without too much damage." However, it became apparent later on that the Xweetok had been downplaying the severity of the situation, once reporters mentioned it to the head coach. "I'd like to say we came out unscathed, but that really wasn't the case," he said. "We did avoid a head-on collision, but the ship suffered several glancing blows, and almost everyone wound up with at least minor bumps and bruises." The biggest problem, though, came from the fact that most of the damage suffered was in the storage area of the ship, which happened to be where the team kept robot players Goltron Mk I and XL Striker 3.8 for the trip down to Altador. "Goltron was mainly okay," the coach said, "With most of the damage being cosmetic. But XL Striker was decimated, and it's going to take our technicians pretty much all of the time remaining before the Cup to fully repair him." In the meantime, the team is reportedly going to practice with a back-up robot brought along from Virtupets with specs similar to that of the downed robot.

Only a few locker rooms still remain empty, and the halls of the Colosseum are beginning to fill with stands holding every kind of AC souvenir imaginable. Eager fans are already lining up outside of the ticket office, hoping to be the first to snag one of the few precious seats right on the edge of the Yooyuball field.

May 22: Stone and Sea

It's taken nearly a week, but one of the top contenders for this year's Cup finally arrived today. Fans gathered outside the Colosseum eagerly held their breath in anticipation when a bus rolled into view early this afternoon, and once it was confirmed to be the team they'd waited for so long, the entire crowd burst out into cheers and rhythmic stomping. The applause started as the bus slowly ground to a halt, and intensified with each new player that disembarked, until the frenzy grew to such an intense level that a few fans had to be revived after fainting with exitement. Team Tyrannia, in gratitude of such an outpouring of emotion, spent a considerable time walking around the crowd, taking care to chat with each adoring fan and even signing the numerous pictures that got thrust their way. Once the furor finally died down, the team made their way into the Colosseum's media room for the traditional pre-season press conference, where they mostly covered standard fare until the coach was asked about longtime goalkeeper Harlis Neyhbol. "I know there's been a lot of rumors going around about Harlis during the off-season," he said, "But since the rosters won't be finalized for a few more days yet, I can't really comment on them one way or another. However," he continued, "I would like to say that he has been a great asset to this team, and no matter what his future holds, we will all be forever grateful for everything he has done for Tyrannia."

In what could be called an ominous sign, (For the other teams, at least) TY apparently brought a tempest along with them, as the skies over Altador swiftly went from a brilliant blue to overcast, then to an ominous black shortly after the team finished their press conference. Within minutes, the heavens opened and the crowd outside scattered in all directions, while the Colosseum's grounds team frantically rushed to cover the grass of the stadium's main Yooyuball field. It was in this scene of chaos that Team Maraqua made their first appearance. "It's a little surreal for us, seeing everyone try to avoid getting wet," center Oten Runeu laughed while watching one reporter attempt to wring the water out of her fur. While most teams were forced to turn in for the day, Maraqua was encouraged rather than dissuaded by the inclement weather, and the entire team took to the empty greens outside of the Colosseum to conduct their first official practice of ACVIII. After running some speed and agility drills, goalie Tonie Plessix rounded up the few remaining fans which had chosen to ride out the storm, and the small group used the last bit of daylight to conduct a mock scrimmage, with plenty of sliding and full-on faceplants to keep the match from getting too serious.

Only two locker rooms still remain empty, and it is all but certain that the entire roster of teams is soon to be completed. Even though the Colosseum won't officially open to the public until the start of June, the main atrium is scheduled to open to the public in two short days' time, where fans will get to browse displays of past Yooyuball tournaments, sign up for Fantasy Yooyuball leagues, and purchase tickets to every one of this season's exciting matchups.

May 23: M & M

The skies above Altador continue to rain down water upon the earth, but for fans of Yooyuball everything is bright and sunny. With the arrival of the last two teams today, the Colosseum now boasts a full complement of talent from around the globe, ranging from Magma players hailing from deep within Neopia to robots assembled in a futuristic space station high above the clouds. As the weather was still poor enough to prohibit any kind of on-field practice, most of the teams spent the day going over game film or discussing various YYB strategies until Moltara captain Aldric Beign initiated an impromptu Geos tournament. "We just got here, so there's really nothing for us to do until the crew finishes setting up," the Kougra commented later. "I like to play Geos in my spare time as a way of unwinding, so I'd brought along a set with me from Moltara. I wasn't really intending to play or anything, but I'd just finished setting it up for down the road when Valtonous Rea happened to walk by." The goalie for Faerieland, apparently a bit of a Geos enthusiast herself, challenged Aldric to a game to pass the time. Within a few minutes players from other teams, bored from the lack of action, began to drift into MT's locker room to watch the game. "It was really exciting," forward Tulah Kisner commented. "Both Aldric and Valtonous were in the lead numerous times, and no one knew who would win until the very end." Once the match had concluded, so many other players indicated a desire to try their hand at the game that various staffers were sent on a mad scramble to rustle up as many Geos sets as they could find. "Things kind of snowballed from there," Aldric Beign laughed. "Players began teaming up together to take on other players, so we instituted a scoring system to keep track of who had won the most games. I'm not going to say who wound up on top, but I will tell you that there are some surprisingly talented Geos players on the Yooyuball field."

The final team to arrive at the Colosseum was Team Meridell, and if they were looking to make an entrance they certainly did so, though perhaps not quite the entrance they were hoping for. Thanks to a break in the weather, most of the crowds had returned to the Colosseum in anticipation of the final team to arrive, but their enthusiasm turned to confusion when they saw a bus bearing Brightvale's logo roll up to the stadium. Once Meridell's players disembarked, it became evident that someone from Brightvale had somehow managed to paste their logo over MD's in the brief period of time the bus had been parked down at Altador's docks. The angry coach quickly set low-level staffers to removing the offending image, but the indignity to MD had yet to be fully uncovered. While part of the crew hastily scraped off the new paint, the rest of them began unloading the team gear. Much to their horror, every single piece of equipment in the bus had been painted either green or yellow, and their practice Yooyuballs had even been marked with the image of King Hagan's royal crest. "If that's how Brightvale wishes to conduct themselves in the Altador Cup, that's their business," defender Ilsa Ellits said of the prank, calmly. "However, there will be a time and place for us to repay them in full for this little scheme they have concocted."

Now that all eighteen teams are in the Colosseum, the countdown to Altador Cup VIII can finally begin in earnest. The souvenir stalls have been packed to the brim, and the slushie machines are running at full speed in anticipation of the eager fans set to flood into the Colosseum in less than 24 hours' time.

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