Day Three: Elmhurst Academy Olympic Games Continue with More Challenging Events and Opportunities for Teamwork

August 10, 2016—With only two days remaining in the Elmhurst Academy Olympic Games, the four teams are tightening their shoe laces, applying sunblock, and putting on their game faces for these competitive events

At 9:30 am, the first event of the day was the Prairie Prowler’s water toss, challenging their aim, depth perception, and strength. In this individual event, each teammate took their turn tossing a soaked water toy into a five-ringed circle (each worth a given amount of points). Many students succeeded in this event, receiving 50 points for tossing their toy into the smallest ring.

Following their event, the Prowlers continued with some fun water play, along with the Butterfly Team, which included a modified version of ‘Duck, Duck, Goose.’

The Woodland Warriors transitioned to their Track & Field events this morning with the long jump, hurdles, and the notorious three-armed race. First, in the 20 yard Hurdles event, the student raced against another teammate, jumping over a series of thick strings, designed to slow down the opponents. But each teammate completed the dash quickly, and later reattempted the event to try to compete against themselves to beat their first time.

In the long jump, the Warriors were given a lengthy running start and one big jump before landing on a mat with measurements on the side. The average jump was about 4 feet with a few teammates reaching as far as 6 feet. Finally their day ended with their biggest fun for the team--their three-armed race which had two heats of four teams. Regardless of the outcome, every Olympian was running their fastest, laughing their loudest, and competing their hardest, much to the pride of coaches, Ms. Sarah Duffy and Ms. Lucile Busleta.

The Lakeview Lizards, our oldest team, returned back from their field trip ready to start back up their games. And what challenging events they did receive! In their weightlifting competition, the Olympians showed off their muscles and challenged themselves to lift various sized logs—small, medium, large, and even extra-large logs.

Afterwards, their coaches Mrs. Lisa Dillard and Mr. Tom Benedetto split their Olympians into two teams to compete in a game of team handball. After a long match that challenged their hand-eye coordination, teamwork, and communication, the game ended with a final score of 8-5.

Since the Olympic Games start, faculty and staff already have noticed the students have demonstrated as teammates and competitors. The high-fives, rounds of applause, and cheering were at a record high this morning, as well as working together to help each other succeed. Even more, when one of the Woodland Warriors broke the long jump record, their teammate jumped up and down and shouted, “I’m so proud of you!”

Stay tuned for Elmhurst Academy’s Olympic Games as the stakes get higher and the events become more intense!