‘We all knew that we were here not just to do well for our own pride, but also for our teammates and, even more importantly, to congratulate our opponents’
‘Nothing could have preparedme for China’
Among the sportsmen and musicians who represented DC London were three student journalists with instructions to report on the Olympiad. One of them, Darrius Kudiabor Thompson (Year 11), shares his highlights of an unforgettable cultural event D escribing an amazing experience to someone is always hard, especially when that person can never feel what you felt or see what you saw. What
Below : Ben Osuntokun (Year 12) with other DC London musicians.
done!’ for being a great sportsman. There are photos to prove it! And this friendship didn’t just stop in Shanghai: it followed us to Suzhou, where we were welcomed in style by a chorus of Taiko drummers and played a well- fought match against The Scots College in front of a cheering crowd of Dulwich College Suzhou students. After a well-watched and appreciated lunchtime concert, our musicians again had a full audience after the rugby, with the combined talents of the schools were on full display. From Shanghai and Suzhou we travelled to the main event in Beijing and here the competition heated up. Our two days were filled with many competitions, including a second round against The Scots College and the dynamics were those of collaboration and competitiveness. Everyone wanted to get a gold medal in the Athletics or win the basketball tournament for his age group. But even with that natural competitive spirit, we all knew that we were here not just to do well for our own pride, but also for our teammates and, even more importantly, to congratulate our opponents. During the opening ceremony we flew our respective Dulwich flags proudly and during the athletics, runners would encourage one another in a team huddle before racing. We cheered on our school teams with chants while watching nail-biting basketball matches for three different age groups. All Dulwich schools cheered on Dulwich London in the second leg against The Scots College, which was fought hard but ended in defeat. In every sport we had worthy opponents; some we won and some we lost. But we knew we were all there to witness and congratulate each other’s skill. Even Dr Spence showed his football finesse in a game of 66 – I mean, who knew?
makes describing our first Olympiad harder is that there is nothing to compare it with. I have seen some breath-taking sites: the foothills of the Himalayas, the entrancing lights of Las Vegas, the maze-like streets of Venice, and so much more. When I have come home, my mother has asked me, ‘how was your trip?’, ‘what did you do?’, ‘what was it like?’, ‘tell me all about it?’ And I say, ‘it was a great trip, Mum!’ and that’s as far as I go in terms of adjectives. Indeed, I have had my fair share of adventure and I consider myself lucky. But nothing could have prepared me for China. When I was asked to report on the first Dulwich Olympiad, I felt honoured and buzzing with excitement at the thought of standing in the midst of it and explaining it to all the people back home. Soon enough, I was standing in a very urbanised Shanghai, the first stop on our tour, feeling more daunted about what might be thrown at me. But after a warm welcome from all the staff at Dulwich College Shanghai (including some familiar faces), I settled in. Even before I started writing about our stunning swimming performance and our even greater struggle in the U17 football match, I could sense the beginnings of a unique Olympiad atmosphere, which would only build over the coming days. Despite the eight-year age range between Dulwich’s competitors, we quickly became close. But something else happened during our three-day stay in Shanghai. Over the course of the different events, from ten-aside rugby matches to combined Big Band performances at a specially arranged food fair, there was a growing bond between the two schools – Dulwich College London and Dulwich College Shanghai. Yes, we knew we shared the same foundation, but now we were talking with them, walking with them, playing music and competing against each other in amicable matches, shaking hands at the end to say ‘Well
I make it sound like this tour was just about sportsmen: it wasn’t. The musicians were working hard to prepare a performance at the closing gala concert, where we sat mixed in with people from the Dulwich College International schools and ate a traditional meal. While we listened to the melodious sounds of the combined band and choir, we got to know each other on our tables, exchanging hopes and dreams as well as email addresses. After the big events came a few days of relaxation and exploration of the wonders of China. During a much- needed lie-in, I began to think about the past few days and how amazing it was that I could now say that ‘I was there during the first Olympiad’. We have seven Dulwich schools abroad and we often say we want to build a bridge between us. Well, we have now done more than that: we have walked over and shaken hands. Finally, I came upon the right word to describe this trip: ‘unforgettable’.
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