What's a Watson?

Five shirts, four pairs of shorts, six pairs of Under Armour socks. A red polo for Sundays. A MacBook Air, quick reads, my Bible, chargers, headphones, and a jump rope stuffed into the cavities of my ChromaCast guitar case. A pair of chinos and Adidas joggers flank the zippers of my Osprey Farpoint 40L bag. On August 1st, I left DFW International Airport bound for Birmingham, England to watch the XXII Commonwealth Games with a backpack, guitar, and an open mind. It probably means that I won't take home as many souvenirs, but I think at the heart of this minimalistic approach is that in traveling light I can receive so much more from my Watson travels to study athlete's mental health. (I promise I didn't skimp on the underwear though;)

Every August since 1968, the Thomas J. Watson Foundation affords 40 undergraduate seniors across the United States the means to study on a topic that they are passionate about internationally. Fellows make connections with relevant international contacts, pitch their proposed project to the Foundation, and ,if awarded, must leave the country for an entire year. There are no requirements to conduct research or produce deliverables beyond quarterly check-ins and expense reports. Through the Watson Fellowship, I received the opportunity to study the mental health of elite athletes in England, Iceland, Kenya, the United Kingdom, Australia, and China.

With a year of study and a fixed budget, I would be remiss to think that my travels could solve or fully understand the diverse problems that face athlete's across the world's 195 countries. I learned this lesson this past week at the Commonwealth Games with just 72 nations/territories. There is a balance between depth and variety of experience that limits the cultures that I can experience. Even if I had 20 years, I wouldn't come close to understanding subcultures, the ins and outs of each sport/discipline, and the intersections of race, class, and identity from which many elite athletes live and compete from. Like one might to a defective TV remote, you might ask me "What can you do then? " . To this, I would reply that someone once told me that the shortest distance between two people is a story. When we share stories, we find common threads, the world gets smaller, and the way forward gets clearer. What I can do is tell you my story and share some of the stories from athletes, coaches, and sports psychologists in our conversations surrounding mental health. In doing so, I hope that it is honest, engaging, and can help athletes (current and former) better navigate their mental health.

#HereWeGo,

Chibuike "ChiChi" Odo

p.s. - If you would like to receive updates on my travels, put your email down below!

p.s.s. - Starting this blog today at my Uncle's house in East Croydon, London en route to Iceland (want to remember that)