Sports Day is one of the most eagerly awaited events of the school year, and with each passing year it continues to grow in scale and spirit. Since the introduction of the house system, the event has shifted to a whole new dimension, creating not only a greater sense of spirit but also camaraderie among houses and competition between houses. This year was one of the most memorable due to several new initiatives, such as the implementation of house leagues, practice sessions at Wings to understand the houses better and a more competitive scoring system, all of which contributed to one of the most electrifying Sports Day build-up.
Implementations of House Leagues and Multiple Trophies Up For Grabs:
Since their implementation last year, the house’s have significantly grown in prominence and activity, currently expanding beyond focusing on sports. The introduction of house leagues, implemented by the student council in early September, has brought out a competitive spirit amongst students. These leagues have also provided house captains and vice-captains opportunities to understand the members of the house better, bringing out camaraderie and teamwork. On Sports Day, Blue celebrated their win by lifting the track and field trophy, however, the journey doesn’t stop there, and there are numerous more awards to be won. Offering multiple chances for achievement allows for a fairer system that represents a more holistic representation of each house’s efforts, moving beyond just one day defining the winner.
Score System and Criteria’s:
This year’s scoring system brought about a new approach, starting with the first visit to Wings on December 6th. Students had multiple opportunities to earn points for their houses through various criteria like best timings, participations, placements, spirit points and cleanliness. However the overall scoring system sparked some confusion, particularly around the rubric for spirit points and whether points counted from practices or only on the day itself, students still rose to the challenge, putting in their efforts to secure those early crucial points. One key issue noticed by many students over the course of the practice period was the lack of clarity about the scoring system. The metric by which the students were scored in terms of participation, winning, and placing podium overall, was not formally shared and was more unspoken. Furthermore, students, including student council members did not have an idea of the breakdown of each team’s points, so while the points kept accumulating, no-one really knew how. While it is fair to say that every win was well deserved, this inability to question the reality of the system led to some confusion and complications. For example, on sports day, a behavioral incident required some point deductions for both green and yellow houses, however, there was no clarity on how many points were deducted, with assumptions reaching up to 200 points, which if true, was the reason green came third instead of second. But with no actual clarity, it is impossible to discern or argue as to whether the point deduction was worthy of the behavior. This lack of clarity led to many students wondering how the points were accumulated and while no-one wants to question the organisation of the event, there could be potential concerns raised about the calculation’s authenticity.
Event Flow and Scheduling:
One notable change this year was moving the challenging 800m race final to the Sports Day practice earlier that Tuesday. This adjustment helped both junior and senior students not exert themselves, as the 800m is the most grueling race, usually followed right after the 400m. While this change allowed participants to perform better overall, Sports Day kicked off to a later start, which meant that some events felt slightly rushed. Races were scheduled back-to-back with shorter breaks, leaving many students feeling exhausted, especially under the intense heat of the sun. Furthermore some events took longer than expected, leading to events overlapping, like the senior girls shot put and 100m. This led to some events being delayed, and students needing to complete their field event, and going to the track immediately after. This also meant that the students waiting for their track event to begin, were likely waiting in the hot sun, causing more exertion. Nevertheless, as a day centered around pushing yourself to your limits and showing up for your team, it was all in the spirit of the event.
Somaiya Sports Complex
Sports day has been held at Wings, a ground in Bandra west, and one of the most well known football grounds in the city for the last two years. It is a familiar and calming setting to most and it also holds memories of old victories and losses enhancing the spirit of sports day. However, this year Sports Day was held at Somaiya Sports Complex, a ground in Chembur with a similar layout. This was shocking to most when considering that both the practice events held prior to the main event were held at Wings. A sense of comfort could have been taken away, however the organization did an excellent job of trying to familiarize the students with the new ground. After the practice sports day, not only was there an assembly held, but also a map of the ground was showcased to all the students with labeling of each area, to ensure organisation on the day of the event. After the actual event, many students believed that the facilities at Somaiya Sports complex were, in fact better than those at Wings due to the comfortable stands, and the cleaner toilets. To conclude, despite the potential for confusion caused by the differing locations of the practice day and the actual event, the assembly successfully prevented this and ensured students were well-prepared for the new setting.
The lead up to Sports Day 2025 was the biggest and most elaborate one yet, however it emphasised on the spirit and determination of the houses, and how the introduction of the houses, a better scoring system and practice sessions have enforced a competitive experience along with better bonds within the houses.