Written by: Jared Lim
Edited by: Chen Kexin and Lydia Ong
Photos by: EusoffWorks
With the female team coming in a close second place yesterday, expectations for the male team were at an all time high, as hopes were raised for them to reclaim the throne and clinch the victory today. It was a stressful situation for all, the boys and Eusoffians. To show their support, many also lined up along the route, which is also possibly the reason why our boys could stay calm and poised for the upcoming challenge.
Line up:
First runner: Luke Chiang
Second runner: Joshua
Third runner: Jeremy
Fourth runner: Dylan
Fifth runner: Isaac
The lineup for Road Relay this year is similar to that of Track, notably Luke, Joshua, Isaac who took part in the 4x400m race a few days ago. Jeremy, a freshie and badminton expert is also in the lineup this year, in addition to our RR captain and football vice captain Dylan, who will be the fourth runner for this event.
*Due to construction and pavement works, the route for IHG this year was modified and marginally longer in distance as runners had to cross the zebra crossing at the IT slope and loop through the YIH tunnel to finish at Raffles Hall.
*There were also only 5 runners this year due to social distancing safety measures
Starting off was Luke, who clocked an impressive 6mins48s. He came in 3rd place, with TH leading the race and RH only slightly ahead of us. Luke sprinted his heart out on the slope and managed to put us close to the leaders of the race, despite going up against the tough showing from our opponents.
Luke with a steady pace, putting him far ahead of the opponents behind.
Next up was Joshua, who also managed to do relatively well with a timing of 7mins10s! In this race, Joshua was the epitome of grit and perseverance. Despite the gap created by TH and RH, Joshua managed to hold on and fight against gravity as he blasted through the slope. He was full of will and we could definitely see the amount of pain he had to endure while traversing the insurmountable hill. It is truly commendable on his part!
Joshua grits his teeth as he fights his way to the front.
Then, it was up to Jeremy to close the gap. Upon receiving the baton, Jeremy sprinted off with all he had. It was not easy running the route alone, but Jeremy managed to complete his course within a more than solid timing of 7mins5s, which was without a doubt faster than most of us could ever imagine running.
Jeremy is shiny with sweat, but nothing stops him from running his best.
*Have you guys ever tried walking up the slope?? It's so extremely and crazily tiring and these guys are literally sprinting up the slope after 1km of all-out running.
Next up it was our Captain Dylan, who finished the race in 7m2s. Dylan was the man behind it all. Training after training, three times a week, Dylan would show up without a doubt to mete out the training plan and to train with the boys. Similarly, in this race Dylan fully embraced his saying: “Train hard, train smart. Most importantly, train with your heart” and ran this race with his heart out.
Dylan going hard.... the captain does not disappoint!
Lastly, we have Isaac, who completed the race in 6mins32s. As if being the fastest in the track event last week wasn’t enough, Isaac’s hunger and determination for success netted him the fastest timing in the team tonight. He carried the baton of the team and with pride, he completed the relay to bring 3rd place to Eusoff, behind RH and TH who came in 2nd and 1st place respectively.
Isaac's eyes burn with determination as he fixes them on the finishing line.
Here are the results:
This race was without a doubt unexpected. Where credit is due, our opponents had an impressive showing and were commendable, to say the least. Nonetheless, it was unspoken that at the end of the race, our boys wanted to come back next year stronger than ever, to put up a challenge against our opponents and regain the glory. Until then, we will not stop improving ourselves and “train hard, train smart. Most importantly, train with our hearts out.”
Comments