St. Marks – From Sleep to Prep (All in a Day’s Work)

By Sarah Anand[1]

The St. Marks tournament in Dallas, Texas was unlike a lot of national tournaments I have been to.  For starters, it was in the hotel I was staying at, making it truly a bizarre and great experience to take the elevator down to the prep room in the main lobby. But for reasons that did not have to do with the surroundings, St. Marks is also unique because it allows the competitor (if he or she wishes) to double enter in ISX and USX. By the end of the second day, a person who makes it to finals in both fields would have had the opportunity to speak twelve times (six preliminary rounds, six out rounds). With more rounds competed in one day than any day at Nationals, an extemper might be thinking, “How exactly do I keep my sanity and still give a great speech by the end of the day?” For me, preparation for this tournament was not too different than what I normally would do. However, because it was towards the beginning of the season, I did have to make sure my focus was as consistent as it could be.

How the tournament is structured

If you decide to single enter in one extemp division, St. Marks will be a relatively relaxing tournament. If you decide to enter in both divisions, then St. Marks will be a relatively hectic, yet fun tournament! The rounds are essentially one after the other, in two hour intervals (8 a.m, 10 a.m. 12 p.m., etc), alternating between Domestic and International rounds. Some of the round topics that came up last year were (for DX) American economy, presidential election, environment/energy, and judicial/executive issues. For IX, some topics included Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. With the end of the first day, all the preliminary rounds are completed, and breaks are released the following morning (to quarterfinals from my experience). On the second day, breaks are handled like any other tournament, with quarterfinals to semi-finals, and semis to finals (keep in mind that if you have broken in both IX and USX, you will be going to two quarters rounds, two sems rounds, and two final rounds). The final rounds (last year) were hypothetical situations, with a question attached at the end based on the aforementioned scenario. For IX, the six competitors each (in laymen terms) had to choose a country and explain why it should be considered for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council. For DX, the competitor was asked to choose a candidate that hypothetically would not get picked for the 2008 presidential election, and explain why he or she would be the best choice as nominee in the 2012 election.

Before the tournament

I was not fortunate enough to attend the Wake Forest or Yale tournament, so St. Marks was my first out of state competition. Before attending, I was puzzled as to how I would be able to get over not only the concept of six speeches in one day, but also speaking on domestic issues. I consider myself an IX-er, so knowing I would have to talk about DX topics at least three times was daunting. I started practicing speeches the week after school started (two to three speeches) so I could build up consistency and familiarity with the event again. The transition from summer vacation to extemp practice was grueling at first, but by the time October rolled around, I felt like the gap had been closed. I worked with my coach on various drills (intro redo’s, link exercises, impact statements, timing, delivery, and personality development).  Just as important as running speeches, so too was reading! I read the usual papers/magazines (New York Times, The Economist, The Financial Times, etc), and tried to read specific think tank and journal articles on subjects I was unfamiliar with (especially domestic issues). Although it was nerve-wracking at first, some of the practice speeches I gave were on topics that I was not too comfortable with; this helped me simulate what I would do if the same situation happened at the actual tournament. On the day that I left for Dallas, I printed out all the major headlines of the New York Times to read on the plane ride there.

The final round

All of the questions I answered prior to the final rounds were standard yet upon reading the slips of paper containing what we would have to speak on before the final round, I realized that this scenario was something I had not prepared for! Being first speaker for my first final (IX), I had to immediately start thinking what country I would choose to have a permanent seat on the Security Council.  I settled on India, thinking it to be a powerful country in Asia that was not only rising in terms of it’s economy, but also politically as well (wielding considerable more influence than it used to).  In prepping out the speech, I thought I had made a strong case for why India had to be a permanent member, speaking on all its accomplishments in the recent past.  However, I forgot one important (and large) detail: analyzing India’s relationship with all five permanent members, and how that would play into India’s bid for a seat. I think this is a major reason why I placed in the bottom half of the final, and led me to realize an important lesson; whenever faced with a hypothetical situation, your answer as well as the parts of the scenario are equally important and must be addressed in the seven minutes given. Instead of giving a seven minute speech on how much the country has progressed, I should have focused more on what India brings to the table in regards to the issues at hand, and the countries already seated.

For the DX final, my scenario (to the best of my memory) was like this: Hillary Clinton wins the presidency in 2008, but decides not to run in 2012. Which candidate should be the Democratic nominee in that election? I chose Barack Obama, focusing on the experience he would gain by then (foreign policy wise as well as domestic), and the undercurrent of young voters who would help propel him. I ended up placing in the top half of this final round, and I think it might have been because I knew (surprisingly for a DX topic!)  more about the subject at hand, and because I was definitely more relaxed.

All in all, St. Marks was a great tournament, and I’m so happy that I attended!