Sports Day

Sports Day....surely every kids favourite day? Well I have fond memories of egg and spoon races and three legged races and stuff like that. Different houses competing against each other for glory and bragging rights for the rest of the year.
But it's been a long time since I've taken part in a sports day for a elementary school so I was pretty excited to get involved in this one. So I was gutted when I couldn't take part in anything because my knee is still not up to par.

A glorious day greeted our fearless competitors. The school split into the Blues and the Whites. After careful consideration of the athletes (which consisted of finding my favourite students, and seeing which team had more) I nailed my banner to the white team. 

After the entire school does the warm up together with military precision it's game on!

Running races, skipping rope competitions, group wrestling, tug-of-war, random stuff I can't describe and the finale of a relay races between the grades.

The skipping contest was fun to watch. 

The kids got so competitive....the rules are basically the last kid standing. 3 rounds of skip until you can't skip anymore. 

Blues won this event. 

The rabble of kids here were holding one student up and the aim of the game was to make the other student fall. Sort of wrestling, rather dangerous and gladiatorial.
Disclaimer: No child was hurt in the process of these games

 You pick one side you're gonna make friends and enemies. 

Made some serious enemies that day. But this rabble were cool. 

Too cute for words

Even cuter!!! 

Just chilling

 A weird flag/banner game that I have no idea meant. Cultural differences kicking in here.

The day culminated with the last two events. The tug-of-war and the relay. My White Team were ahed and needed just one victory to seal an overall win. The t-o-w went to the blues....It was an epic performance on their part. It was OK though...the relay. Anything can happen. I'd seen spills, trips and even some poor mongrels following the wrong lines and run off in some random direction. So all to play for. 

They lost! Bugger!

But it actually squared off the teams. 1200 - 1200. So I wait for whatever tie-breaker is to come. I'm expecting jousting on midgets, or dwarf throwing....or the more likely rock, scissor, paper face off between the schools best rsp experts (yes these kids take that very serious)....but no. Nothing. It ended in a draw. I was outraged. Flabbergasted. Bemused. 

Kids need to know the thrill of victory and the bitter taste of defeat. None of this wishy washy 'we're all winners' rubbish. 

It was a really fun day, and made me want to be 12 years old all over again.