by Olivia Schrauwen (‘24)

The International Academy has an annual tradition of celebrating the week-long event of Olympics. During Olympics week (usually during the first weeks of October,) each grade competes against the others for the ultimate prize: bragging rights. Many consider it an equivalent to other high schools’ homecoming week; the week contains different spirit days, athletic competitions, and artistic events, for which all grades accumulate points based on their performance. The biggest, most important day of Olympics is Friday, when the main event “field day” is officially held. Every year, the seniors seem to prevail as the winners, no matter the previous years’ placing. I, like many others, wonder how true this really is. There is a rumor that the games are rigged every year to ensure that the seniors win. Which, I don’t deny is a possible explanation, because I remember feeling the frustration as a freshman, sophomore, and junior when we would lose points for absurd reasons. Perhaps they really do gain the necessary skills through their time together bonding as a class. Seniors do have some unfair advantages: we are the strongest, most knowledgeable, and have had the most time to hone in on and improve our skills.

Nonetheless, senior year is a special one regardless of the results. Seniors are often referred to as the most ruthless or aggressive grade during the tradition– you don’t mess with seniors during Olympics, it’s a known fact. But what exactly makes senior year so special during Olympics? Is it the promise of victory? Is it simply the fact that it is our last one and we know we shouldn’t take it for granted? Is it our last opportunity to prove we are stronger together? Perhaps all of those factors contribute to it. To really explore this question, I asked a number of students from the class of 2024 at IA to describe senior year Olympics in one word…

Interviews:

“Invigorating”

Jacob Yonan (‘24)

“Bittersweet”

Rita Zein and Eesha Gummeraju (‘24)

“Exhilarating”

Devi Chandran (‘24)

“Commemorate”

Micah Anderson (‘24)

“Exhilarating”

Varun Tandon, Raj Shah, Azaan Dinkins, Darrin Du (‘24)

“Accomplishing”

Soph Mays (‘24)

“Nostalgic”

Nisha Singhi (‘24)

 “Crazy”

Nusaibah Mabrouk (‘24)

What Does Olympics Mean to Me?

Olivia Schrauwen (‘24)

I get it now. I think it’s almost impossible to really understand how important Olympics is until you’re a senior. I didn’t know why the seniors always took Olympics so seriously as a freshman, sophomore, or junior. I thought they were crazy and obsessive. But now, as a senior myself, I finally understand what it means to be a senior during the International Academy’s Olympics. Being a senior means realizing the comradery that develops as a result of working together for four years. It means we get one last hurrah together before we go our separate ways. It means being anxious and scared of what comes next, but enjoying the moment right now and celebrating our unity as a grade. It’s a right of passage for IA students, and it’s finally our turn. It’s our moment and it’s one of the last times we all get to just be kids together. Olympics as a senior isn’t just about winning– I think that’s something that took me four years to learn. It’s about working together and celebrating each other’s accomplishments, because they all add up together– to win, of course. I remember asking a classmate, on Olympics day, if they had won an event they were just participating in. They answered with something along the lines of, “My group of friends and I lost in that event, but [other senior’s names] won, so we won!”

This conversation stuck with me because it’s when I observed the grade’s unity in action. It wasn’t about our individual wins against other classmates. It was about cheering on your classmates and being happy for their wins, even if you lost. I think this is something that makes the other grades lose every time. In the words of Mr. Morrison, “If all the grades teamed up against the seniors, the seniors would lose. But the other grades are too focused on being the ones to win, and not forcing the seniors to lose.” That’s why the seniors win every year, it’s true. I feel like every year before, freshman, sophomore, junior year, we aim to beat our own team in every event. But the seniors know that this year is their last, and no matter what, we have to come out on top. So we finally put our differences aside and celebrate the wins of our classmates even if it means you, yourself, lost. It really is about sacrifice and knowing that it doesn’t matter if you win, as long as your team comes out on top.

Olympics as a senior is about gaining those individual wins to help the grade win, and with so much support behind every event you participate in, you don’t have to worry about looking silly to other people. Take the watermelon eating contest for example. Anyone looks ridiculous trying to gobble down all that watery fruit and it’s actually really disgusting to watch. But we cheer on our classmates and chug down that watermelon for the greater good, the greater purpose that we all feel the weight of on our backs. And we have a great time achieving it too. No one feels weird or dumb or is concerned about what everyone else is thinking because as a grade, we all know each other so well that we know that we all accept each other for who we are. Whether you’re loud or quiet; a participant or cheerleader; a brainiac or an athlete; we all play a part in our win. Everyone can feel how important they are on the day of Olympics. But no one feels more important than anyone else, because we all know the role we play.

Now, I know the senior class is not perfect, no one is. But on this one day, in our final year, I think that we all are able to take a step back and appreciate our classmates for who they are. Everyone has a talent, everyone has a role in our success, and these facts are fully embraced by the entire grade during Olympics. It’s what secures the senior’s win every year. Some think Olympics are rigged, but I know now that they aren’t. Believe what you want, but when you become a senior at IA, you’ll feel it. The energy. The excitement. The unity. The competition. And all of these things will fuel the grade to win. Every time.

To the IA seniors of the future, I hope you feel the same way during your senior year Olympics. It truly is a once-in-a-lifetime feeling that I already miss. I hope you read this article and take into consideration the factors that I believe will lead to your success. Trust me, if you continue to create an environment where no one has to feel embarrassed, and instead, feel valued, you will win– guaranteed. Good luck at your senior Olympics, not that you’ll need it 😉