It was good to be Travis Kelce this summer. London … Cannes … Italy, a series of summer sojourns that found Kelce in Europe to be with megastar girlfriend Taylor Swift or hang out with brother Jason on a podcast mission. Now?

Quite the opposite accommodations. Kelce lodges in a cinder block dormitory at Missouri Western State University, joining his Chiefs teammates while sweating out training camp. The star tight end wouldn’t have it any other way.

“This is my sanctuary, baby,” Kelce said Saturday as the Chiefs wrapped up the first week of full squad workouts. “St. Joe. Year 12.

That means I’ve spent about an entire year of my life up here in the dorms.” The math adds up. Training camp lasts about a month. Kelce joined the Chiefs as a rookie in 2013, the same year Andy Reid became the head coach. Yep, that’s enough calendar days for a year — among Kelce’s 34 — that he has sweated out in a St. Joseph summer.

“Everybody may see that as pretty grueling,” Kelce said. “I enjoy it, man. There’s something about this place that gets you ready to play every single year. And I’m not going to lie — I got pretty excited as the time started counting down to come here and get this thing rolling.” It had been a wild few weeks for Kelce before training camp. He surprised Swift by showing up to her Eras Tour concert at Wembley Stadium.

Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) and running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire (25) clown around on the walk to the field for training camp at Missouri Western State University on Saturday, July 27, 2024, in St. Joseph. Tammy Ljungblad [email protected] A week earlier, Travis, his brother Jason and his wife Kylie attended the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in France. In May, after Kelce attended Swift’s concert in Paris, the couple flew to Lake Como in Italy, where they lodged at a private villa at $21,000 per night during their three-night stay. At least at training camp, Kelce gets his own dorm room.

Camp time remains meaningful to Kelce. As a four-time All-Pro and nine-time Pro Bowl tight end, he’s not battling for a job like others on the practice fields. But the spirit of the team is formed here and there is no arguing with the results. The Chiefs enter this season having posted: 11 straight winning records 8 consecutive AFC West titles 6 straight AFC Championship Game appearances … and playing in four of the past five Super Bowls (three Super Bowl wins). “It’s where it all starts,” Kelce said. “This is where you find out what the team is really made of, how you sharpen the iron, how you practice, your practice habits, the attention to detail.”

Even in less than luxurious surroundings. RELATED STORIES FROM KANSAS CITY STAR CHIEFS Patrick Mahomes gearing up for big game at training camp: Texas Tech vs. K-State JULY 26, 2024 1:39 PM SAM MCDOWELL Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes subtly fires back at Raiders’ Kermit jab.

Which part matters JULY 26, 2024 3:27 PM BLAIR KERKHOFF THE KANSAS CITY STAR 816-234-4730 Blair Kerkhoff has covered sports for The Kansas City Star since 1989. He was elected to the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2023. JOIN THE CONVERSATION FOLLOW THIS CONVERSATION TO BE NOTIFIED WHEN NEW COMMENTS ARE POSTEDFOLLOW Anyone can read the comments, but you must be a subscriber or logged in with a registered account to contribute. If you do not have a registered account, you can sign up for one below (it’s free).

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