Jai You!! It's Sports Day in China

The last two days have been among the most fun times I have ever experienced since my arrival in Qinhuangdao. I had the privilege of witnessing my first ever Sports Day and I must say that I felt like a proud mother watching all her children compete in various events. For those of you who are not familiar with this event, it is a mandatory event that every school is required to host every year. In other words, students participate in their first ever Sports Day in elementary school and the fun continues until university. The only difference is that by the time they reach university age, many of the students have become severely disenchanted with the whole affair and many students prefer to take the extra two days off of school and travel or sleep in their dormitories. Considering the following 3 days are part of an official holiday called "May Day" for some or just Labor Day for others, taking the additional 2 sports days off means a whole week to relax and enjoy oneself which in China means....more studying, YAY!!!

The most incredible part of the entire event for me however was the Opening Ceremony. If any of you recall (which I'm sure you do) the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics then it should come as no surprise to you that the students basically mimicked that exact format. For about 2 months, Freshman students (who are required to participate in the opening ceremony) practiced day and night for their role in the performance. There were cheerleaders chanting and marching and moving into formation more seamlessly than the University of Florida's Marching Band on Game Day. There were dancers in traditional Chinese outfits, 3 drummers who performed their pieces with a flare that only the Chinese can pull off; there were even a few dragons out on the field. I was awed by the appearance of hundreds of colorful flags, changing color on cue and making beautiful designs on the field. The coolest thing was watching each College walk into the stadium just like the Countries walk into the Olympic Stadium at the opening ceremonies and yes, there was even a torch included! Someone actually ran the torch down the length of the field!!! So cool!

This stadium was the host site of the Argentina? Soccer team during the Beijing Olympics...or so I'm told

There were 4 dragons total in the center of the field

Each College/Department was represented by their own flag and their own students to accompany it.

Sports Day was not at all what I expected. To be honest, I thought it would be a track meet where people relaxed and hung out for half a day and watched the races but as it turns out, it is a rather serious affair. Every department at the school competed with each other for the grand prize and as a Foreign English Teacher that meant we were all required to participate. Activities included relays, long jump, basketball (free throws), soccer, shot put, and some rather strange activities like rolling a tire or a hula hoop while running in a straight line. I signed up a little too late so I basically served as the cheerleader. It was sweltering hot and crowded as I was reminded that after all, this is China but despite the heat, it felt so nice to cheer on all of my students and watch them as they competed in their respective events. These two days will stand out among my memories of Qinhuangdao and I am so happy I was here to witness it at least once. Video to follow soon so keep an eye out in the next week.