Darkness faded away and the golden rays of the sun started to break out. The students jumped out of their beds in excitement as the days they have been preparing for had finally come – the Bohol Deaf Academy Intramurals.
The beating of the snare drums and large plastic water tank (the students’ improvised drum) blended with the students’ various-pitched shouts echoed in the surroundings as they started the three-day Intramurals with a parade around the BDA premises on the 28th of September 2016. Cheers became louder (yes, deaf kids can cheer) as the torch was lit and the four teams – Black, Purple, Orange, and Pink Team raced in raising each of their banners on the flag pole. Afterwards, the four teams gave their best in the Zumba contest. If a visitor who didn’t know the school had been watching, he surely would not guess that all these kids were deaf as they even danced energetically to the Zumba music.
The search for Mr. and Miss BDA Intramurals 2016 followed. All of the candidates evidently exerted much effort in preparing for the pageant. With wide smiles and grace, they came out from the dressing area and paraded onto the stage for the production number. All the spectators already had their favorites and applauded wildly as they took the stage. The crowd was more mesmerized as the candidates showed off their talents – dancing and acting. One guy even performed taekwondo. Who would have thought that the candidates who are generally shy students in the campus actually had such hidden talents? The Intramurals helped them come out of their shells. Then the most awaited part of the pageant occurred with the sportswear competition and the question and answer portion. Woah! With their very well-prepared sports attire and props plus their smart answers as well, the judges certainly had a hard time conferring whom to crown as winner. In the end, the fortunate Mr. Winwin and Miss Criezyl won the titles. Winwin was also awarded as Best in Interview while Criezyl grabbed three of the four minor awards: Best in Production Number, Best in Talent, and Best in Sportswear. Moreover, Junard was awarded as the Best in Talent and Best in Sportswear and Crispolo got the Best in Production Number award, all for the male category. Virginia on the other hand, received the Best in Interview award among the female candidates.
Furthermore, fun and energy radiated throughout the activity as the students actively participated in the various sports and games which include basketball, volleyball, table tennis, badminton, amazing race, and running events. It was definitely inspiring to see how skillful the deaf students are. They played as if they never knew tiredness. As every game ended, hugs, handshakes, and high fives were spreaded around and as they dare to play fair their huge smiles spoke volumes about how much fun they had.
Hats off not only to the Black Team who was hailed as the overall champion but also to all of the students for the good sportsmanship they all demonstrated. The students learned to accept both victory and defeat with grace. The theme of this year’s Intramurals was, “Play, Learn, and Grow Together”. The students surely lived up to that theme.