Woodstock hosts the Win Mumby tournament in new gym

Swift passes and fastbreak points. The sounds of dribbling basketballs only overshadowed by the sounds of hundreds of stomping feet and clapping hands on the sidelines. "Play 1" is called by the point guard, and it leads to an open jumpshot. The halftime buzzer sounds as the team in brown and gold make their way to the bench. On the stands, the crowd breaks into a deafening cheer, followed by a Mexican Wave.

Woodstock went basketball crazy last week, as the 10th Win Mumby All India Basketball Tournament (Affiliated to the Basketball Federation of India) was hosted by the school from 21st-24th of April. A total of 17 boys and girls teams participated in the tournament, from schools in Mussoorie, Dehradun, Patiala, Shimla, Nainital, and New Delhi.

The tournament tipped off with an opening ceremony on the 21st of April. This was the first time that the tournament was being held at the brand new Win Mumby gymnasium. Woodstock alumnus and popular actor and writer Padma Shri Tom Alter (Class of '68) offered the opening remarks at the ceremony. Woodstock's Intermediate Band and Cheerleading squad held a pep rally for the students as well as athletes from all the visiting schools.

It took nearly four days of constant basketball at the gym, the Hostel court, and the Ridgewood court, before the winners were crowned on Saturday evening. Both the Welham Boys' and Welham Girls' teams from Dehradun won the tournament, beating St. Georges' College (Mussoorie) and Modern School (New Delhi) respectively in the final games.

Woodstock Tigers played well in both boys and girls divisions, but both the boys' and girls' teams lost out to the eventual winners in the semi-finals.

The matches were officiated by Uttarakhand State and BFI qualified referees and played as per the latest FIBA rules as adopted by the Basketball Federation of India.

Crowds of cheering supporters followed behind the Tigers in their every game, raising school spirit through songs, dances, and a pre-planned 'White-Out' day. The Inter Band once again performed before the finals, and a special performance was held in the form of a 'Yak Dance' from dancers of the Tibetan Homes School in Mussoorie.