It wasn't just the greek-style track and field events that were going to be shown at the IAC Games. There were also games from television shows such as Ninja Warrior, Legends of the Hidden Temple, Global Guts, and others that showed head-to-head-to-head competition. There were also some newly created games and additions to already established games.
---
Karen had just finished her practice of an event known as Peak-to-Peak, from Global Guts, when a reporter from Fox News came up to her. She smiled to herself, knowing that Clara, as always, made it clear to the media what they could and couldn't do.
"Karen," asked the reporter, "What would a member of Animalia School of Modeling be doing here?"
"Partly it's burning off excess energy after getting back from Mieni Atoll." Answered Karen, having prepared for such questions, "But the rest of it is maintaining my looks for the Fashion Show."
"Fashion Show?" Asked the reporter, a little surprised.
"The Games are not the only part of the IAC." Replied Karen, "It also includes Animalia School of Modeling showing off new fashions and what they have learned."
---
Marcy was rather pleased for the way things were going now. Her newfound confidence enabled her to do many things she wouldn't have done before. She was treated as an equal in the girl's locker room; joined Animalia School of Modeling; and gotten a seriously gorgeous mate. What was most surprising was that Chilly was asked to perform in the opening ceremony for the IAC, by singing an adaptation of the song that Quasimodo sang about his desire for freedom from the Disney adaptation of the Hunchback of Notre Dame. As it turned out, he had a great singing voice, and only needed a few lessons before he could perform flawlessly.
---
Rift and Jet were also practicing for the Games, but they were taking part in entirely new events made especially for Avian Animalians. While speed flying and aerial gymnastics were popular for the smaller bird Animalians, Rift and Jet would be participating in an agility/obstacle course. In such an event, larger birds had to not only fly through rings in a certain direction, but also fly through gaps in trees and complete the course in the shortest possible time.
---
Another event that was looked forward to was the IAC Brawls. While many visiting males were disappointed that there would be nothing sexual in the combat, they were somewhat glad to see some UFC action and not merely Greek events. Anderson, the newly-named chairman of the Animalia Fighting Association made it clear that there were several rules to the combat, and absolutely no press/media allowed in the locker rooms.
---
The Green Glacier Adventure Clan were well into the high-middleweight classes for the bodybuilding competition, but they were all somewhat nervous about performing on stage. Fortunately, Anton had a conditioning class to help with getting ready for performance.
The Bodybuilding competition was one of the most anticipated events, according to the website. One of the changes included what could be best termed as "posing pasties" for the tops for the female participants, while they were still required bikini bottoms for "modesty". Another thing that was added was the "ultimate couples challenge": the male competitors had to lift their female partner, with one arm, all the way over their head while the female competitor demonstrated their flexibility by standing on their male partners hand with one leg and lifting their other leg high up and forming a Y-shape. Another thing that was included was Feats of Strength, which ranged from bending solid metal bars out of shape, to breaking increasingly harder blocks of stone, to the "Atlas test": supporting an extremely heavy stone made to look like the world in the same pose as a famous sculpture of Atlas for one whole minute. To help with crowd control (and make the bouncers/security personnel's job easier) a clear plastic barrier ten feet in height was set up two meters away from the posing stage.
---
One would thing that, upon seeing the tears in Janice's eyes as she watched her mother train for the sporting events, that she was upset with her mother. On the contrary, she was very glad for her mother finding new life in Animalia. She had already found a new boyfriend, her confidence was higher than ever, and, above all, she was happier. Her mother was competing in the Track and Field events, and she seemed to take to the life of an athlete very well.
---
There was a special course for the Triathlon event that would enable maximum fun and competitive spirit. There was a massive specially made lake for long distance swimming; a special course with several loops to challenge the bikers; and a special flat for the running segment. It guaranteed to be a lot of fun and challenge for the triathletes. Abby certainly was looking forward to it.
---
Martial arts were also another thing to look forward to, but there were a few disappointments, especially among the younger generations who had seen the Kung Fu Panda series, or played World of Warcraft since Mists of Pandaria was released One such disappointment was that the pandas didn't have large guts as they were portrayed in media. But other things more than made up for it, such as the performance/demonstration of various martial arts weapons and abilities. It would be something to see a spider monkey Animalian break a slab of granite in one blow with a roundhouse kick.
---
Iphis and Ianthe competing in the games was the biggest news yet for the IAC. While shi wouldn't be participating in running and jumping, shi would be competing in throwing, swimming, and the Bodybuilding competition in the Superheavyweight competition, though they would take an automatic penalty due to symmetry because of their build. The news that they were a hermaphrodite was even more surprising. In their file at the Animalia records department, shi was officially "bisexual", but the press was not allowed into the records department.
---
Sera, a.k.a. Canary Diamond, was anticipating her role in the opening ceremony of the IAC. She was asked to sing "One Moment in Time" by the event organizers, which she didn't mind. She had already met several "fallen" pop stars/celebrities at the newly formed Animalia Adventures recording studio, many of them using assumed names to escape their notoriety. One unexpected meeting was with one of Elvis Presley's childhood friends, who had watched his rise and fall. He had done a private study/research on what caused the downfalls of many promising celebrities, and narrowed it down to what he termed the Three Prohibitions: drugs, sex, and money. He had decided to come here, not only to help future Animalian pop stars avoid those, but to also help future "reborn" pop stars keep away from what destroyed their original career.
---
The IAC was shaping up to be the biggest thing ever seen in the world, second only to the Olympic Games. It would also help raise awareness for peace and tolerance of others.