Track Qualifying

It may have only been 9am but the crowd that gathered around the SRC track field seemed to be living in a parallel universe that is unbounded by the ridiculous notion of time. Everyone was buzzing with the kind of intense energy, excitement and anticipation that are never found in lecture theatres as we waited impatiently for the commencement of the day’s track events – the 4x100m and 4x400m qualifying heats. Each hall was allocated and confined to a designated area for which to pursue the mundane activities of containing our energy by sitting, relaxing and cheering on our hall mates. But that did not prevent our competitive spirits from spilling over these boundaries, intermingling and permeating the atmosphere of the stadium.

The day started off with the 4x100m relay events, followed by the 4x400m events. Witnessing the determination embodied and incarnated in the movements and energy of the athletes as they strove to outrun each other was a rare sighting. There was even a singular fierceness in the manner in which the runners received the baton and scrambled away to the finishing line.

The beauty of these events, however, lies in the way each member combined their strengths to produce a complete effort. The crowd was kept gripping to their invisible seats as each team’s superiority and ranking were continually destabilised and re-established right to the finish line.
Of course, the supporters’ (who are as much a part of the team as the runners are!) also made great contributions with their motivational techniques. Some were seen cheering to a beat carved out with the innovative aid of plastic bottles, while others stuck to the old-fashioned method of shouting their lungs hoarse. Indeed, at times, it was unclear whether we were there for a cheering or running competition!

Congratulations to our girls who thoroughly deserve their place in the finals of both events, even incurring minor pulls in the process. Unfortunately, our boys finished 9th in both events, thus narrowly missing out a chance to join our girls in the finals. But such is the nature of competition, and hall seven is incredibly proud of the vigorous displays by our boys and we are confident that they will be amongst the best this time next year. For now, we hope to see more of you turning up to support our girls in the finals! See you there!

-Rebecca Lim