International students attending the University come from an eclectic mix of backgrounds and enjoy an assortment of sports. But while the sports they prefer may differ, their passion for sports is universal. Exchange students rarely have the chance to watch the sports they enjoyed at home, and many welcome new sports with open arms when entering Louisiana. Specifically, they are intrigued by the magic inside Death Valley. ‘The first time I walked into LSU stadium with … 93,000 people, it was a ridiculous feeling,’ said Harsha Dissanayake, chemical engineering sophomore from Sri Lanka. ‘Just the atmosphere that LSU creates for that sport kind of makes you get involved in it.’ Dissanayake was mesmerized by the sheer magnitude of the stadium during his first game. ‘I don’t even think there’s a place in Sri Lanka that could hold that many people,’ he said. Dissanayake said Tiger Band is a polar opposite to the school bands he had witnessed back home. ‘We had a big school band, but it didn’t get involved in games,’ he said. ‘Then you walk in [Tiger Stadium,] and it’s just out of this world.’ Dissanayake said fans in Sri Lanka are most passionate about cricket, and rugby is slowly gaining popularity. Dissanayake doesn’t know all the ins and outs of American football yet, but he said the atmosphere continues to draw him in and has made for a quality substitute to the sports he would normally watch. Berit Aljand, international studies senior from Estonia, was a former LSU swimmer. She said she came to Baton Rouge after a friend recommended LSU to her, and she also had trouble picking up the rules of football. ‘I didn’t really get the whole game,’ she said. ‘It was like 30 seconds of play and 30 seconds of no play. We have soccer back home, and it’s a lot different.’ Along with soccer, Aljand said basketball and skiing are the most beloved sports in Estonia. She said she has watched football games and gymnastics meets since coming to LSU. Aljand is one of many international students playing a sport for LSU. But even club teams include students from other countries. ‘Currently I’m on the LSU judo team,’ said Nafees Alam, a finance junior from Bangladesh. ‘Originally, I picked LSU to come play for the golf team here. But I haven’t pursued that.’ Alam said not having a car made it too difficult for him to travel to and from the golf course on a daily basis. ‘I was looking for a school I could afford,’ he said. ‘I thought I would come here and walk on to the team, but I never realized that transportation would be such a big problem.’ Fate took a different path than Alam had expected when he entered LSU. ‘I ended up getting very involved with the judo team, and we’ll be participating in nationals this March,’ Alam said. Whether certain international students attend LSU to play sports or to study a certain major, their love of sports travels with them. Ben Blaesche, a graduate student from Germany, said soccer is atop his list of favorite sports. He said he was disappointed the 2006 World Cup was in Germany while he was still in America. ‘Since I got here, I haven’t followed soccer too much,’ he said. ‘You can’t share it with anybody, so you watch it by yourself, and it’s not really the same.’ With so few LSU students following soccer, Blaesche said American football has filled the void. He said the concept of a major sports team tied to a university is unique to the United States. ‘The school affiliation [makes for] a fun atmosphere,’ he said. ‘I love going to the games.’ Apparently the reach of LSU and Southeastern Conference football extends worldwide. Charles Teo, petroleum engineering sophomore from Malaysia, said he came to LSU for his major but was aware of Tiger football even in Southeast Asia where badminton dominates sports talk. ‘It’s the most famous thing, even in Malaysia,’ he said. ‘I don’t really play because size matters, but I enjoy watching. I heard LSU [students] in bowl season are crazy.’ — Contact Rowan Kavner at [email protected]