The track events were completed on schedule by 2:00 p.m. Since junior high students were still competing in long jump, Mr. Dedio used the remaining time to run a few relay races for practice and fun.

 

This year’s grade 4-8 track and field meet was held on Tuesday, May 8th at Sisler High School. IHMS has been holding its track and field events  here for years because Sisler has a huge field for throwing events (like shot put, discus, and ball throw), a sand pit for long jump, and a large asphalt track for running events.

 

The grade 4-8 students arrived at Sisler High School in two chartered buses. Since they had a bit of free time before starting their events, some students sat on blankets with their friends while others played a quick game of basketball. Within a few minutes, Mr. Dedio used a loudspeaker to explain a few important rules to the students before directing them to their first event.

 

Washrooms  were at a nearby community centre

Unfortunately, because it takes place on an open field, there’s very little shelter from the sun and wind, so sunburn and windburn are common complaints the next day. Also, tripping and falling on the asphalt track can be dangerous and painful, and although washrooms are available, they’re located a few minutes away in a nearby community centre on the other side of the field.

 

Sister High School

Aerial photos of the field at Sisler      Click here to enlarge

 

 

Where Do the Events Take Place?  . When students first arrive at Sisler, most leave their belongings near the cement basketball court in the lower right hand area of the photo shown below. This is the “Staging Area” where students are given instructions at the beginning of the day, and where they line up by grade for lunch and at the end of the day before boarding the bus. Races: The races take place on the large oval track in the middle of the field. The starting line varies according to the length of the race. Ball Throw: Ball throw takes place on the grassy area within the track. Discus and Shot put: Both discus and shot put take place in adjacent baseball fields just north of the staging area. Long jump: Long jump, which is a bit isolated from the other events, takes place at the two long jump pits adjacent to Sisler High School. Washrooms were located at the other side of the field at the Northwood Community Centre

 

 

Track and field is an exciting adventure for all students, but it’s especially exciting for the grade 4 class because it’s their first real track meet. Since the grade 4-6 students are learning what kind of events they may excel in or enjoy, they have fewer options than the junior-high students in selecting the events they want to enter. In fact, they were required to take part in all track and field events. These events include:

 

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Ball throw Shot put Long Jump 60 m race 200 m race 800 m race

 

The junior high students, on the other hand, were able to sign up for whatever they wanted, as long as they chose a minimum of three running events out of five. However, everyone had to participate in shot put, discus, and long jump. The grade 7 and 8 events were:

 

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Shot put Discus Long Jump 100 m race 200 m race 400 m race 800 m race 1500 m race

 

Grade 7 boys hanging out with their friends before the events started

 

Mr. Dedio, the school’s Phys. Ed teacher, was the track & field convenor. He overlooked all of the events as the convenor but spent most of his time working at the races. Each event was supervised by a teacher and parent volunteer or an educational assistant:

 

Mr. Dedio, the school’s Physical Education teacher, did an exemplary job in organizing the day’s events. Although he oversaw all the track and field events, he spent the day working on the races with seven other teachers and parent volunteers. In the photos shown below, he is giving last minute instructions to Mr. Burg (who was in charge of shot put) and Mrs. Cambly (who was in charge of ball throw).

 

 

The Events:

 

Long Jump Supervised by: Mrs. N. Hutsulak and Mrs. Rapinder Dhugga (parent volunteer)

 

 

Discus Supervised by: Mr. L. Burg and student volunteers

 

 

Ball Throw Supervised by: Mrs. J. Cambly and student volunteers

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Shot put Supervised by: Ms. K. Rowe and Mrs. Corrine McGinn (parent volunteer)

 

 

Races Supervised by: Mr. P. Trochanowski (race marshall), Mrs. A. Wdowiak (race starter), and finish line timers Mrs. S. Naurocki, Mrs. O. Stanowych, Mrs. Tammi Shymko (parent volunteer), Mrs. S. Copp (parent volunteer), and Mrs. Lisa-Marie Stefaniw-Buhay (parent volunteer). Mr. K. Dedio supervised and coordinated the races as well as all the other track events.

 

 

High jump is the only field event that is usually done at IHMS because the large foam mattress, the poles, and the stands are too large and bulky to transport to Sisler High School. Mr. Dedio does high jump in the school gym during regularly scheduled Phys. Ed. classes.

 

 

Students posing in the morning before lunch

 

 

The school’s principal, Mr. Picklyk, was the track and field lunch coordinator. He, along with several parent volunteers provided the student athletes with pizza for lunch (either one or two slices of either cheese or pepperoni). Students were also given an orange, a bag of chips, and something to drink. This made it very convenient for the students because they didn’t have to bring a lunch to the track meet.

 

 

The kids seemed to enjoy the day, and around 2:15 p.m. the chartered buses returned to Sisler to transport the exhausted students back to IHMS. The winners for the different events will move on to represent our school at the “Knights of Columbus Track and Field Meet” at the beginning of June.