The Race, The Relay And The Resilient: The Students On Spartan 2024

On 26 January, our JC2 Eunoians gathered to partake in the annual Spartan Challenge. Jointly put together by the PE department and students from the Outdoor Adventure Club (ODAC) and Sports Representatives, student participants took part in a thrilling combat aerobics workout and a challenging obstacle course before coming together for the Eunoia Wave Relay – the chance for all 5 Houses to make their rounds to be crowned!

As we conclude this first of many House Championship highlights, the Origin* has compiled a range of experiences and stories from the organisers and participants of Spartan 2024. Here are some insights from our JC2 participants!

Credits: EJ Media

Jillianne (23-U1)

1. What expectations did you have of Spartan?

I expected Spartan to be tiring due to the physical demand of the event, but I also expected it to be fun to some extent considering how we could participate in the event with our house and friends.

1. ⁠How prepared do you think you were for Spartan?

⁠I think I was relatively prepared for Spartan given that we did go through preparation during PE lessons, but I still had some doubt that I would not be able to pull through all parts of Spartan considering how I have never done such a physically demanding obstacle course on the same scale as Spartan.

1. ⁠What were your key highlights/memorable experiences?

My key highlight will definitely be completing the obstacle race as I was pleasantly surprised that I managed to push myself through the two rounds of the race. Another highlight I had was spending time with my class and feeling our strong class and house spirit throughout the event, cheering one other on and making the most out of our time at Spartan!

Credits: EJ Media

Yih Xuen (23-U1)

I really enjoyed Spartan even though I was sick and wasn't able to take part in the sports activities. Despite this I enjoyed cheering my house on and supporting everyone! Uzu pride! Our blood is purple! Spartan was truly an event that highlighted the EJ spirit and was honestly a great way to bond with my house :D Not to mention, thank you so much to everyone involved in the planning of the event!! We wouldn't have had this experience without the Spartan planning team! 🫶

Interviewed by: Ashley Teo (23-U1), Bernita (23-I1), Dhanya Kumar Ramadoss (23-U1)

Credits: EJ Media

Caitlin (23-O4)

1. How would you describe your Spartan experience as part of the media crew?

It was quite similar to my experience during EuRun, as I was on duty for both events and could not participate, hence it was not as exciting for me. However, the people participating seemed to be extremely competitive and eager to do their very best in representing their respective houses in the various events. The climax of the event had to be the wave relay, during which everyone was supporting each other, be it the runners sprinting for their lives, or the supporters in the stands cheering on their friends.

Between EuRun and Spartan, I preferred Spartan as there were proper safety precautions this time, with fewer injuries and people passing out. 

1. What was your favourite part of Spartan?

My favourite part was right after Spartan ended and everyone was gathered on the field, reminiscing the end of their time in EJ as J1s. This event seemed to be the one to finally make all of us realise that we were finally J2s and that it was soon time for us to step down and hand the reins over to the incoming J1s. Compared to the high of the main Spartan events, the tenderness of this little moment under the sunset was an extremely bittersweet ending to the day.

1. Did you have sufficient time at each segment to thoroughly experience Spartan?

I was not able to go to all the different segments, due to being stationed at the atria. However, due to the rotation of different people at each station, I was able to see the progression of people’s energy slowly waning as the day progressed. Many of them were more tired towards the end, but it was great to see them competing to beat each other scores, jumping around without a care. It was a good break from the monotony of school life. Despite the dreary monotonous colour of the atria, the infectious energy of everyone having fun at the stations brought some colour back into the grey backdrop of our school compound.

1. Do you think the PE sessions prepared you sufficiently for the Spartan activities?

Since I was part of the media crew, the Spartan training was not very applicable to my actual experience of having to stealthily run around to film the reactions of winning houses. My media experience that I had prior to Spartan did help to give me a gauge of when to take a break and have fun. However, I do bemoan missing out on some of the Spartan activities as the PE sessions did succeed in getting me interested in the obstacles.

Interviewed by: Elina Ong (23-E3), Hannah Phua (23-O4), Ng Le Kang (23-I2)

Credits: EJ Media

Matthew (23-E3)

1. How was the Spartan dry run in terms of its difficulties? What kind of feelings did it incite in you for the actual day itself?

The Spartan dry run went relatively smoothly however it made me realise that pacing was extremely important and that the captains had an integral role for the actual day and that stressed me a bit. However, the course was also really fun and exhilarating seeing all the house comm and sports reps put in their very best made me excited for the actual day to see the competitiveness on the actual day and the showcase of house spirit

1. How was the house spirit on this day? What were some unique things that you noticed about your house that are worth mentioning?

The house spirit on the actual day was absolutely exhilarating and the vibrancy of it all really made me heartened and thankful for being in EJ. 

A thing that I noticed about my house was their never ending determination to keep pushing throughout the course no matter how tough it was, constantly trying to complete one more round. Although some of the house members usually do not enjoy such events, during Spartan, every one of the Ederknights showed grit and competitiveness that was very heartwarming and made our victory that day so much sweeter.

1. What were the highlights/most memorable moments?

One of the most memorable moments was when we were doing the eunoia wave relay, and all the house members — be it in the team or just those watching were cheering so loudly and enthusiastically for the house and when we won the roars of the house cheering was something that is truly priceless and will be a key memory of my ej journey.

A small moment was also when all the classes were taking pictures together with the trophy and just celebrating as it’s not common to see all classes taking pictures but everyone was just basking in the victory and it was a very special moment.

1. What are some of your key takeaways from this event?

I think one key takeaway from this event is that having belief is very important and that as a captain you always have to not only believe in the house but make the house believe in themselves that they have the capacity to win and succeed and i think once that value is really embedded in them, it makes the events and experiences so much more valuable.

Interviewed by: Maesha Tabassum (23-E1), Hannalyn Ng (23-E3), Sophie Ho (23-E3)

Credits: EJ Media