Cross Country: RI clinch third A Girls' team title in a row while Qua Bi Qi of HCI shocks favourites to win individual crown

“All of us kind of expected to do better. Prior to the race, we expected at least second-place, and even felt we were in with a shot for the team championship. We all tried really hard and gave it our best shot though, so we leave no regrets behind, and that’s what matters,” said team captain Melissa Tsang, who is also a member of the VJC football team.

“I love this team so much, and I’ll always remember this season for all that we went through together. All of us finished in the top twenty at the nationals, and that’s an achievement we can be proud of,” added Melissa.

An interesting fact is that out of the six Victorian girls that toed the line on Wednesday, only Romaine Soh and Youth Olympic Games triathlon representative Clara Wong are experienced cross country runners. The rest of the Victorian team consists of a basketballer, footballer and cheerleader.

Chua Yi Lei, JC2, was a former Cedar Girls’ basketball player who took up running in VJC while Melissa Tsang, JC2, is a VJC footballer who also trains with the cross country team.

Jasmine Sim, JC2, was a former school cheerleader who only switched to cross country when the school closed down their cheerleading Co-Curricular Activity (CCA) late last year while Danae Chiong is currently a key member of the VJC football team.

Jasmine shared that she “only had three months of training” prior to the nationals.

“There wasn’t much time for me to get acclimatised to cross country training as when I joined the team for training, they were already gearing up for nationals and the intensity of training was really high,” said Jasmine.

“Thankfully, the rest of the cross country team and my ex-teammates from cheerleading were very supportive and that made me push on. It also helped loads that I had Romaine at training to keep me entertained!”

“Perhaps if I had taken up the sport earlier on, I might have been more exposed to running competitively and that may have allowed me to be fitter and less nervous at the nationals, but all in all, it was a good experience!” added Jasmine.

With so much joy and team spirit abundant in our schools cross country scene, one can’t help but feel touched by the selflessness and sacrifice all these athletes display as they give their blood, sweat and tears in training and competition for the glory of their respective teams and schools. Now, who says cross country is just an individual sport?

national cross-country championships

Qua Bi Qi (Hwa Chong Institution #6070) on her way to 1st place in the A Division girls’ race. She clocked 16:42.24. (Photo 3 © Lai Jun Wei/Red Sports)

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