Saying “Good Luck”

  1. Title: Saying Good Luck to the Swimmer Next to You
  2. Informant: Anna Kingsbury, 19, Female.  Anna grew up in Apple Valley, Minnesota, and was a member of the Eastview High School swim team.  She swam on the varsity high school team for four years and was a captain her senior year.  When interviewed, Anna discussed her experiences being a swimmer at a high school level.
  3. Customary: Superstition
  4. Language: English
  5. Country of Origin: United States
  6. Social / Cultural Context:Anna explained a superstition she and her teammates have at high school swim meets.  They would shake the hand of their competitor and wish them luck before their race, otherwise it was bad luck for them.
  7. No Audio, transcribed Skype Interview
  8. Transcript:“You have to say good luck to the person next to you before you race, otherwise it’s bad luck.  Especially if you’re in one of the center lanes.  We all do it for every single race”
  9. Informant’s comments: Anna noted that she observed this behavior not only at high school meets, but also at club level meets.
  10. Collector’s comments: Wishing your competitor good luck could be a way of showing grace and gratitude, as well as not jinxing yourself before your race.
  11. Tags/ Keywords: Superstition

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