Sportsfest for 40somethings

Alumnae of some schools hold cooking demonstrations and movie premieres, or have get-togethers at popular restaurants.

As this is an Olympics year, the Immaculate Conception Academy Alumnae Association (ICAAA) decided to hold a sports competition.

On June 16, we had the first Interbatch 1980s Alumnae Sportsfest at our alma mater in San Juan City.

Julie Tan Sy (Class 1982) and Irene Yu Ong (1983) were waiting for their ICAn daughters one afternoon when they thought of organizing the festival to strengthen  the bond among alumnae.

“What is unique about ICAns is that we are more known by the name of our volleyball team rather than the year of our graduation,” says Julie.  “We acknowledge each other by saying, ‘She’s Bullets (1982) or  Mickey Mouse (1981),’ or ‘My sister is Hollyburn (1983), Shamrocks (1980), or Whistlers (1984).’  No other school has this distinction.”

“We also wanted to relive our intramurals in ICA,” Julie continues.

At first, the competition was supposed to be only between Bullets and Hollyburn, the two groups that were always rooting for each other during volleyball meets in high school.

But when Julie and Irene talked to other alumnae, many expressed interest in joining.

Finally, with the help of Janet Lim-Ching (1984) and Gina Chu-Ong (1984), every graduate in the 1980s was invited.

I am Hollyburn.  I also used to join swim meets, so when Irene asked me to participate, I readily agreed, even if I had not competed in decades.

The day was bright and clear, perfect for sports.  After the parade of athletes, we took our oath of sportsmanship, laughing all the while.

Then we resurrected old cheers, not only for our batch, but also for everyone else.  Batch 1981 (Mickey Mouse) had the most number of participants, including Emily Tecson, who flew in from Shanghai to encourage her classmates to excel.

Familiar faces

Familiar faces were there, ready to match strength, speed, power and wits.  I was glad to see several alumnae who were not varsity athletes in high school, but who wanted to join the fun.  Sr. Dina Ang, MIC, school director, showed up to support the fest.

Swimming was the first event, with several heats for individual competitions:  two laps (practically 50 meters) each of freestyle and breaststroke.  The swimming contest ended with a freestyle team relay composed of four members from each class.

The obstacle course followed:  running through hoops, crawling under two tables, doing five jumping jacks, zigzagging through chairs and, finally, popping balloons.  Volleyball was held throughout the afternoon, the winner of two of three rounds being declared champion.

“We had modest targets,” says Julie.  “We would have been happy if 50 people showed up, but the more than 100 alumnae who eventually came, aside from the spouses, children and relatives who gathered to cheer for them, far exceeded our expectations.”

What made the sportsfest a success?  “It was the right activity done at the right time,” says Julie.  “The alumnae from the 1970s might be too old to do one, though perhaps a fest among the over 50s would be a good idea.  Those who graduated in the 1990s are still busy with careers and families.

Cheers

“But we in the 1980s wanted to see if we could still compete,” she says.  “Most of us have already organized a homecoming event together, so it was not hard to come together again to play or cheer for our team.”

Whether we won or lost did not really matter.  But I cannot resist saying that my classmates Irene, Nancy Chu-Reyes, Marvie Young-Lim and I were thrilled to win freestyle swimming relay, especially since we beat people who were younger by at least five years.

Years of weekend-only-exercise and a less-than-perfect diet were serious concerns but, once in the pool, we remembered the training of decades past  and rose to the challenge.  I have since sworn to get back in shape, inspired in part by Nancy, who is fitter now than when she was in high school  and is joining triathlons.

Irene set a perfect example, joining all the events.  “I am so happy with the support and the turnout, even if all my muscles are sore,” she says.  “It felt like being in high school all over again, because I got to spend the day with people I went through secondary school with.  Class 1980 was our initiation heads, and Classes 1981, 1982 and 1984 were our intramurals rivals. We are back 30 years later and the rivalries are still as intense as they were in our youth.”

Though rivalry was friendly, at times it got intense.  Bleeding knees, scraped elbows, sore bodies were all part of the game.

Catherine Rose Ang-Sun (1982), a volleyball player then and now, says, “We should do the sportsfest every year so we can prepare our muscles constantly.”

Phoebe Ang-Wong (1983), who continues to play volleyball, agrees, “We need to do the sportsfest more often, especially since we are still capable of playing decent games!”

The organizers would like to thank generous alumnae sponsors Cristina Co (1982), Evelyn Ballesteros-Cochanco (1984), Cherry Lee-Liao (1984), Debbie Pe-Sy (1984), Racquel Siy-Yap (1984), Mimi Coliangco-Siy (1984), Cathy Siy (1980), Peggy Limpe-Uy (1981) and Jocelyn Lim-Gonzalo (1984).

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