Julie Warner, captain of the New England Patriots cheerleading squad, leads her team to Beijing to teach Chinese cheerleaders a few Olympic tricks

Training Center

6:00 a.m. With the time change it's 6 p.m. in the United States. How can it be time to get up already? Put on workout clothes and head to the studio. I’m excited to meet the Chinese cheerleaders and mascots. Let the games begin!
8:00 Everyone is so nice here. I can't wait to teach the Chinese cheerleaders the material we’ve prepared, but first some of the groups perform for us.
8:25 WOW! That was the most energy I've ever seen at 8 a.m. I think I'm out of breath! Everyone did an outstanding job!

Cheerleading 101

8:30 We demonstrate some of our dances, breaking each one down for everyone. Then Carrie, Coach Tracy and I hold a mascot clinic.
10:30 Finish teaching one of our dances, and, despite the language barrier, they pick up the routines with ease. Dance is a universal language, and many of the Chinese cheerleaders know some English, so teaching was actually easy.
10:45 So here we are with a dozen mascots. They put on their costumes and entertain us for an hour. They’re awesome! I wish I could stick around to see them during the Olympics because they’ll be very fun to watch.

Break Time

12:00 p.m. Instead of eating and resting, we head off for some sightseeing. First stop, Tiananmen Square. Very cool! Then we venture to the Silk Market. I'm not as good at bargaining as Carrie, Leah and Corie Mae! Last but not least, the Great Wall. OH MY, I thought we would have a lift up to the top! It’s a long walk! We still have to dance later!

Back to Work

6:00 We meet the Chinese cheerleaders at the Olympic Field Hockey venue. We run the dance we learned and teach more material. We also visit the Bird's Nest, home of the opening ceremonies. Exciting!

TV Stars

9:00 CCTV! We talk about our involvement with the Olympics, and do a cheer with some Chinese words “Ao Yun Lai Le” (the Olympics are coming). The hosts teach us some other phrases in Chinese. I would love to learn more Chinese language than just "thank you,” “have you eaten?” and “cheerleader.”

Soojin’s Dance Studio

10:00 Patriots cheerleaders have performed with the girls before and I see why our squad keeps coming back: Soojin’s girls are AMAZING. Not only are they sweet and welcoming, but these girls can dance! Too bad there isn't enough time to learn the dance they perform using fans. Soojin, I hope to see that on TV during the Olympics!

Goose & Duck

11:00 That was the best teppanyaki dinner I’ve ever had! The crowd was so exciting and our routine with the dancers couldn't have been better.Looked like we'd been dancing together for years. From the crowd reaction, we could tell that we were a hit!

Mix Party

11:30 Sadly, we say goodbye to Soojin and her girls. Good luck and have fun; we’ll miss you! From there we head to another Friday night hot spot, Mix. Walking in makes me instantly want to dance and everyone seems to be having a great time. Oh, and I forgot to mention, it’s the 4th of July. I’m celebrating with the rest of our squad!
12:15 a.m. While we freshen up, Lindsey is making me laugh. I’m so glad BOCOG invited us to China. I’m becoming sentimental. I also realize how excited everyone is about the New England Patriots. Patriots highlights are playing on all of the TVs, there is a guy running around entertaining the crowd in a Patriots jersey, helmet and pads and downstairs I notice even the DJ has on a Patriots jersey. How cool is this!

End of the Day

2:00 The day is finally over; I’m exhausted! Tomorrow we visit the Beijing Sun Village School for orphaned children to teach them the values of teamwork, work ethic and good sportsmanship. Then it’s back to the U.S. Thanks to the Patriots for giving me a chance to volunteer for something so wonderful and to the BOCOG for making this an experience I’ll never forget. Xie Xie!