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ATHLETIC MEET AT ISM – A MEGA SHOW OF DELIGHT
The 33rd
annual athletic meet and drill display of Indian School
Muscat (ISM) was held in all grit and glory at the
school grounds on Thursday, 20th November
2008. It is one of the most important events in the
school calendar, which recognizes and rewards the four
Houses (Red, Blue, Green and Yellow) for their team
effort in sports and games such as cricket, table
tennis, football, basketball, volleyball, badminton and
track and field events, and various other competitions
like quiz, debate, dramatics etc. that were organized
throughout the year. All the four Houses displayed their
skills in their ultimate bid for the Athletic
Championship trophy, the trophy for the March Past and
the Cock House Trophy, which is presented to the
Champion House annually.
Mr.
Saiyed Ali Sidtani Naqvi, Sports Consultant, former
Technical Adviser, Oman Olympic Committee and FMEC,
Muscat
, graced the occasion. He was escorted to the dais by
the Principal. The
school band played the tune ‘fan-fare’ followed by
the slow march music ‘anand lok’. A special guard of
honour made up of Guides of ISM welcomed the guests on
arrival.
Mrs.
Surbhi Jhavar, Sports Coordinator presented a bouquet to
the Chief Guest. The Principal, Mr. Achuthan Madhav
welcomed the Chief Guest, the dignitaries, the students
and proud parents. In
his welcome address, the principal expressed his sincere
gratitude for the noble benevolence and generosity of
His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said for fostering the
growth and development of education of Indian children
in
Oman
. The Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Manpower
and the Department of International Schools were also
appreciated for their encouragement and support. Later
the Sports Coordinators M.C. Saran and Surbhi Jhavar
presented an elaborate report on the sports activities
organized in the school and also various achievements of
the students in sports including inter-house,
inter-school, Sports Fest, Oman Cluster, Gulf Zonal and
CBSE National Meets.
The
magnificent athletic meet was formally declared open by
the Chief Guest. Colourful balloons were released by the
Guides marking the opening of the Meet. Earlier,
brightly dressed students of Class III L presented a
spectacular dance perfectly choreographed by Ms. Judith
Pinto. The exuberant dancers displayed their hearts’
elation to the foot tapping music with the
thunderous clap of the jubilant spectators,
this marked the inaugural event.
The
March Past, one of the prestigious events of the Sports
Meet, then followed with its military pomp, precision
and coordination. It was led by Aditya Kurian, Boys’
Dean, Nikita Benson, Girls’ Dean, and the members of
the Students’ Council. The flag of ISM was carried by
the Boys’ Dean. It emblazoned with its motto –
‘Kindled to Enlighten’ – swayed gently in the
centre living up to its promise of offering a platform
to encourage budding talents. They were followed by the
four Houses which marched majestically in their distinct
colours – Red, Blue, Green and Yellow – led by their
Captains Sachin Chavan, Angad Singh Atwal, Disha Amin
and Shalaka Pai respectively in the order of the
previous year’s positions. The flag bearers of all the
four Houses with their respective contingents marched
around the school ground amidst loud cheers from the
spectators. The School Band comprising 47 students, led
by our staff Mr.
Permanand, ex-Indian Navy, played the marching tune
‘Indian Fleet’ – a confluence of pianica, the
trumpet, the tenor trombone, the cymbals, the
side-drums, the bass drums, and Euphonium – adding
splendour to the March Past.
Later,
the Chief Guest declared the Meet open. The Sports
Coordinator, Surbhi Jhavar took the oath on behalf of
the school, signifying their willingness to participate
and compete abiding by the rules laid down in all
fairness.
Fourteen
exciting inter-house athletic events including four
relay races in various categories were then held on the
occasion. The cheers from the spectators added to the
spurt of speed that made the races a spectacular watch.
The winners of these athletic events were honoured with
medals by the Chief Guest.
The
impressive drill display was presented by 2500 students
to the beat of perfect rhythm with different
accessories. The ‘pomp – pomp drill’ was performed
by about 600 students from Class V. The students created
a pulsating atmosphere of joy and delight with red and
white pomp pomps. About 520 students of Class VI
performed exercises holding beach balls of various
colours. These children displayed their rhythmic and
synchronized moves. The boys of Class VII performed the
‘pole drill’ with various movements to the beat of
the drum. They exhibited a wonderful show of teamwork
with the ‘boat rowing formation’.
The
girls of Class IX performed the indigenous dance form,
‘dandia drill’ to the backdrop of vibrant music. The
colourfully dressed girls with dandia sticks made
various formations in perfect unison. It was a colourful
sight to watch the graceful dancers swirling about in
rich colours to the sound of their sticks. About 520
students of Class VII displayed ‘aerobic exercises’
in perfect unison and brought out the grace and
fluidity, the strength and vigour that the human body is
endowed with. They performed the exercises in perfect
coordination to the beat of the drum. ‘The lazium
drill’ was performed by the girls of Class VIII to the
backdrop of vibrant music. These students with the sound
of the laziums added a beauty and dimension by
coordinating perfectly to the background music. All the
drills clearly showcased excellent precision,
synchronization, rhythm, movement and formation. The
accessories and colour combination added to the pomp and
pageantry of the occasion. The showmanship of the entire
display was acknowledged with a series of resounding
applause. These 2500 students were marvellously prepared
by the Physical Education teachers of the school – Ms.
Manju Pathyarch, Mr. Johns Abraham, Mr. Karthikeyan and
Ms. Bobi Rodolph.
The Red
House retained the trophy for the March Past. The Yellow
House won both the Athletic Champions Trophy and the
most coveted Cock House Trophy for the year 2008 - 2009
from the last year’s champions, the Red House. The
Yellow House Captain, Shalaka Pai along with the House
Master Mr. M.J. Varghese and the House Mistress, Ms.
Sheeba George received the trophies with pride from the
Chief Guest amidst deafening applause. At the end of the
Athletic Meet, the following are the positions of the
four Houses: First Position: Yellow House with 176
points; Second Position: Red House with 157 points;
Third Position: Blue House with 137 points; and Fourth
Position: Green House with 132 points. Individual
Champions in various categories also received their
cherished trophies at the function. The following are
the Individual Champions: Pranati Bargi, Blue House
(Sub-Junior Girls), Zulqarnain Ahmed, Yellow House
(Sub-Junior Boys), Rakshana Rajarathinam, Yellow House
(Junior Girls), Rolton Coelho, Green House and Percy
Coelho, Red House (Junior Boys), Aishwarya Ravi, Blue
House (Intermediate Girls), Atif Ummar and Sujeervan K.,
Red House (Intermediate Boys), Criselda Pinto, Blue
House (Pre-Senior Girls), Troyes Dique, Red House
(Pre-Senior Boys), Disha Amin, Green House (Senior
Girls), and Akshay Badrinath, Blue House (Senior Boys).
After
giving away the trophies to the winners, the Chief
Guest, Mr. Saiyed Ali Sidtani Naqvi expressed his
immense happiness over witnessing the budding athletes
perform in front of such a large crowd. He also
congratulated all the participants.
The show
of pomp, pageantry, sound and colour was brought to a
befitting end when the students of Classes VII and VIII
presented two scintillating folk dances. ‘Ghondhal’
was a spectacular dance. The Kerala folk dance was
performed by the girls of Classes V and VI proclaiming
India
’s ‘unity in diversity’. These dancers looked
resplendent in their eye-catching costumes and
accessories. They sparkled in the twilight. Ms.
Seethlakshmi Mehta, Mathematics teacher beautifully
choreographed these young dancers who captivated the
spectators with their scintillating steps, dancing to
the vibrant music.
While
proposing the vote of thanks, Aditya Kurian, Boys’
Dean lauded the dedicated efforts of the staff led by
the Principal, the Admin Dept., the
supporting staff, the enthusiastic students and their
supportive parents. Special kudos was paid to all
members of the Physical
Education Department ably headed by Mr. R.S. Pathyarch,
in making the 33rd annual athletic meet and drill
display a feast to the eye. Ms. Madhumathi
Balasubramaniam, Ms. Felcy Fernandes, Ms. Sandhya
Venugopal, Tania Robinson of Std X F and Arya V. Giri of
Std X I did a marvellous job of compering the entire
event bringing the joy of
delight throughout the two hour programme.
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