Sports Day

I don't think I've ever experienced anything like Sports Day. This past week we've forgone classes in favor of Sports Day practice, setting up tents, and constantly reapplying paint to the dirt track. I spent probably seven or eight hours in the gym with all the girls in the school learning a dance that we performed today while the boys were outside doing handstands and making the largest human pyramid I've ever seen. We spent two hours doing yard work make the field beautiful and then ran around the track hundreds of times. Even the teachers got in on the action and had relay races against the student captains. It was all fun and games, but I never expected the actual day to be so amazing!

I started off by jumping out of bed. Even though it's Sunday, it feels like a Friday. I have the next two days off and today I just had sports! What could be better? I put on my yellow shirt (I was part of the yellow team) and hopped on my bike. When I got to the school there were signs up and people directing traffic into the parking lot. I found my way to my seat through the craziness of parents and siblings claiming spots around the track to set up blankets and lawn chairs. The students all started marching in, we did some warm up stretches, then got the games under way.

My first thought when I heard about Sports Day was that the students would be playing soccer, baseball, and other games, but really it was much more track and field oriented. First the students started with 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash, and 800 meter dash. There would be fifteen or so races for each category. The students would line up at the starting line and as soon as one race finished the next would start. Other events included relays, an obstacle course, a variety relay, a "downstream," and a "whirlpool." The obstacle course consisted of jump rope, hurdles, a horse to jump over, and crawling under a net. The variety relay was a relay, but ever lap the students had a different challenge while running. For example, some students had to run while carrying a volleyball on a tennis racket, two students with their feet tied together, one student carrying another on hi back back, and many more. The "downstream" race consisted of students standing in a line and bending over so their backs created a path. The smallest student ran along their back and the students bending over had to constantly move to the front of the line to keep up the track. Finally the "whirlpool" consisted of four students holding a huge bamboo rod and running in circles around cones. On the way back to the rest of the team, the other team members had to jump over the rod and duck under it before it was dropped for the next four people to start running.

I had a ton of fun today hanging out with the students, their families, and the other teachers. I ran in a relay with the teachers and did a huge dance with the students. I've yelled 「黄色がんばれ！」(kiiro ganbare, Go yellow team!) so much I think my throat will be sore tomorrow. I apologize for the lack of pictures, I was not allowed to take pictures of the students. I have an enkai (work party) tonight with the teachers I saw at Sports Day today, so I'm off to meet them at the Chinese restaurant and then go to karaoke!