Sports results embracing the Asian Games: Heart to Heart at WCH

In line with the spirit of the Asian Games, Wellington College Hangzhou continues to build our sports programme that aims at increasing participation and building a well-rounded future for our pupils. Every time we compete on the sports field, we aim to win but also to uphold the sportsmanship of unwavering dedication and a positive attitude. As we approach the end of this academic year, let us follow our PE department in retrospect of the highlights and achievements of this year.  

During our fifth year at Wellington College Hangzhou, we saw a sporting programme that surpassed our expectations.  

COVID 19 becoming a thing of the past, enabling a dynamic, innovative programme to grow. We continue to model our outstanding sporting programme on the best sporting programmes in the world. This year, we can confidently say that we have established successful teams from both our Primary and Junior High/ Senior schools. We are now the dominant sporting school amongst bilingual and international schools in Hangzhou.  

This year saw over one hundred and eighty competitions and fixtures take place in the sports of badminton, basketball, football, netball, swimming, synchronised swimming, touch rugby and volleyball. Our teams have been able to follow the successes of the last academic year. As a school, we have created the first sporting league system in Hangzhou to increase the number of fixtures played annually. The league known as the ‘Hangzhou Schools Sports League’ has enabled our teams to compete in regular fixtures on Mondays and Thursdays in the sports of football and basketball for both genders within U12 and U14 age groups.  

During the month of March, our teams had the opportunity to compete outside of the province. The first sporting tour saw U13 teams in basketball, football, swimming, and netball compete at the Changzhou Sports Festival. This was a wonderful opportunity for our school to collaborate with other schools and also put their skills from training sessions into practice. Our teams shone throughout, winning the overall trophy.

April saw the first set of Wellington College Hangzhou versus Wellington College Shanghai competitive fixtures. The pupils truly showed their immense talent and dedication to the sporting program. The girls beat Wellington College Shanghai U14 girls football team 5-0. Please bear in mind that most of the girls were 12 years of age. The boys beat Wellington College Shanghai U14 football team 6-2 and beat the German International School U14 football team 5-3. The boys beat both Wellington Shanghai A U14 basketball team and Wellington Shanghai B U14 basketball team.  

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In May, the third Wellington Cup Synchronised Swimming Competition was held in our campus. Our pupils performed marvellously and won the championship among all six teams from around the country. As the competitors entered the pool and performed graciously in water, everyone present was in awe of the skill and physical strength on display. 

On 27 May, our Grade 5 and Year 6 pupils travelled to Nantong to participate in the launch of the under 11s 2023 Wellington Games competing in teams with pupils from our sister schools in Wellington College China. Pupils competed in six major events, including ultimate frisbee, tag rugby, bench ball, volleyball, unihoc and football. The athletes demonstrated sports skills and spirit beyond their age, and every participant on the field deserved our respect and praise. 

In May and June, Wellington College Hangzhou was invited to compete at the first U11 FOBISIA games in five years. The event took place in Beijing between May 31st and June 2nd. 34 pupils participated in the highly competitive event in the sports of football, swimming, T ball and athletics. Throughout the tournament, our pupils showed true determination and grit to compete against the best schools in China. Our team placed 2nd in athletics, with many of our pupils placing 1st in track events. Within the football competitions, our boys placed 3rd and our girls placed 1st. The girls were the dominant force in the football competition, with many coaches and parents complimenting how well the team played. Swimming and T ball were sports that we had not trained in, however, we placed a respectable 4th.

From 23 to 25 June, Wellington College Hangzhou Synchronised Swimming squad visited Macao, China, to participate in MGM Artistic Swimming Elite Extravaganza & MACAO Artistic Swimming Competition, where they were amazed by breath-taking performances from the elite teams, including China’s Synchronised Swimming Team, Beijing Synchronised Swimming Team and Sichuan ZOKE Synchronised Swimming Team. Our wonderful team won third place in the competition with their skills and artistic presentation.  

Sporting teams have continued their successes from last year within the district of Xiaoshan. Our teams demonstrated true grit and sportsmanship in these competitions, which led to their success. Our Junior High Swimming Squad was crowned the 1st overall champions in the Xiaoshan District Competition with an amazing record of 10 gold medals, 2 silver medals, 1 bronze medal and 2 district records. The U14 girl's football team placed 4th in the district cup, and the U12 touch rugby team finished 3rd in the Hangzhou touch rugby cup. Our teams have also competed for the first time in both basketball and volleyball within district competitions.  

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Meanwhile, WCIH and HSH are members of COBIS and we have submitted the application to FOBISIA for Hiba Academy Hangzhou to become a full member school and will hopefully become only the second bilingual school in the history of FOBISIA to achieve that status. Being a member of these two renowned associations provides abundant opportunities for our pupils to compete with their counterparts from around the world and grow at a global level.   

The vision of the sporting programme is to promote participation amongst pupils whilst simultaneously promoting a competitive program where pupils can fulfil their full potential. Sport is a way in which pupils can focus their energy outside of the classroom in a positive and constructive environment. As a department, we will continue pursuing this vision and hope for more success in the next academic year. We hope to continue to spread the message of Wellington College Hangzhou sport by competing within the best federations in Asia.