Medals, races and the screaming Merlins

Friday, 10th October, 2008 - Early morning going to breakfast, one could see the dining hall full of red, green and blue house shirts; everyone was all geared up for Sports Day. Throughout the past two weeks, house captains had been very busy making decisions, and coming up with various 'secret tactics.' This year with a number of new students and others having graduated, the odds were unpredictable and everyone had their eye on the House Cup. One of the main strategies to win the House Cup was to accumulate as many participation points as possible. And then there was the Spirit Award; with Mr. Montgomery gone, people were aware of the fact that the Merlins were not as strong and the house spirit award, too, was up for grabs.

The stands were full of life. The Woodstock Band is what first set the mood early in the morning. Although 'Eye of the tiger' and 'The Woodstock Anthem' are two numbers that we always get to hear, they never fail to excite people. The middle school students were particularly active. There were three different middle school teachers who were dressed up as Eagles, Condors and Merlins. All the Condors had their faces painted green, The Eagles were cheering with pompoms and the Merlins had posters. Everyone cheered on their house athletes. The last position holders in the various races too were greatly applauded.

Nghia Doan, a Merlin was one person who had the crowd at the edge of their seats. An unlikely candidate for the silver medal in high jump, the win came as great surprise to everyone. The senior boys hundred meter dash was another event that was eagerly anticipated. The results had been different every time during practices but most people were betting on Avalokiteshwara Kaul from the Condors. But he came in a close second, after Montezarul Mehdi from the Eagles. Both senior girls and boys relays were also very exciting.

After all the events had taken place, about five neighboring schools participated in invitational relay races. The volume from the stands was enormous. Woodstock came second in the boys relay.

When all of the events were done, we were treated to a karate exhibition. Three karate students demonstrated their skills then their teacher chopped through a large bunch of flourescent light tubes that were bound together. It was a thrilling demonstration!

At the end of the day, the Merlins who had the maximum points won the House Cup as well as the house spirit award. The singing and loud cheering that came from the Merlin stands, led by the Merlins house captain definitely paid off. Vahini Mallipudi from the Condors and Vinay Gupta from the Merlins were the senior girls and senior boys champions respectively. Although it was exhausting, Sports Day made for a very eventful and an extremely entertaining way to begin the weekend.

Thanks to Mr. Mark and the PE Department for making it a memorable day!

Neha Abraham, Student Journalist