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Issue No 21 April 2012 24th JCRC Edition
ORDINARY FIVERS EXTRAORDINARY ACHIEVEMENTS An Inter-Hall Games Special
Inside:
IHRG, IHG, Volleyball Champions Soccer Silver Hall Opening & Closing Bonus! Supplement Pages
CAB Dinner, Chinese New Year, Stella Eccellente 2012
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A.Editor’s Note Congratulations! Hall Five has achieved splendid results, with an overall ranking of 9th in the IHG. Certainly, this improvement would not have been possible without fiVers’ dedication. To celebrate this milestone, we have specially planned this 8-page IHG issue, in hope to help everyone recount and relive those brilliant moments.
Inter-Hall Recreation Games This year is definitely a fruitful year for the Hall 5 recreational team. Last IHG, we finished 16th. But twelve months on, fiVers’ willpower has seen the team rise from the ashes to the top of the pile, clinching 9th position. This is, without a doubt, a remarkable turnaround and achievement.
Snooker
Boggle(Quater-Finalist)
With IVP player Johnathan, as part the team this year, our snooker team was speculated to be one of the best teams. It was a pity that we failed to advance to the quarterfinals by an extremely narrow margin. Let’s get back stronger next year!
Cwm, gju and dzo - valley, knee and a cross breed yak and cattle in Tibetan, are mere examples of ‘sets of three letters combinations ’ that boggle players regurgitate during their game without knowledge of the meanings from their three letter word list that contains over nine hundred words.
Darts Nicole Seah
Event!
Hopes were high for our darts team this year. With veteran player Colin as the captain, the team was all ready to fight it out. We came that close to securing a position in the quarterfinals: rising up in the group stages, only losing the final spot in the last match.
HAVOC ‘12 Senior Camp
Chinese Chess Who says Hall 5 does not have any capped players for Chinese Chess? We have our very own “capped” player, Yong Chuan, who put on a cap on the first day of competition. Coincidently, Yong Chuan was on a winning streak. Perhaps, being a “capped” player really makes all that difference!
Led by freshman, Chong Baoyi, the team became the first team from Hall 5 to enter the quarterfinals in the IHRG, winning five out of seven games they played. This was made possible due to members, Stevenn Koh, Alvin Siow and freshman Chen Mei Ling who safely secured three out of five tables needed to win a game. Third year players, Herrick Ong (ex-boggle captain) and I safely took a backseat to allow room for the new members to gain more exposure in the games.
Leow Hou Teng
30 June 2012, 9 AM Be there or be square. Join ‘HAVOC ‘12 Seniors’ Camp: Vendetta’ on Facebook to be in the loop.
People Publisher Hall of Residence 5 24th JCRC Editor Tan Xue Qun Assistant Editor Nicole Seah Pei Rui Editorial Liu Kai Ying Tee Chin Siang Bryan Design Leow Hou Teng
Carrom- From Xenia
Contract Bridge(Semi-Finalist)
“Hi Carrom players! Thanks for your relentless support and all the effort put in. You guys have been a great company throughout the IHRG period. Hope that everyone had fun in the process! You guys rock!”
Hall 5 Contract Bridge Team stormed into the semi-finals of the contract bridge IHRG, in the penultimate recreational competition to be held in IHG 2011/12.
Othello - From Derrick “Hi players! I felt each and every one of your excitement when you guys came back with a victorious smile. You guys have really played the game well, if not the best, for Hall 5. Othello is not just a competition in IHRG, but a lifetime interest! Till next year!”
Weiqi Our Weiqi team made a breakthrough as they finally won a game in IHG after two years (their first win in seventeen games!). What’s even more notable was that the captain, Hong Ming, defeated strong players from defending champion, Hall 11 and eventual champion Hall 9. Kudos to all players!
Our team kicked off the series of games with a 19-11 victory over Hall 1, after a painstaking game that was close at times, before eventually prevailing with a narrow win to conclude our first day at the competition. Under the guidance of captain Qian Dong and veteran player Zhi Wei, we exceeded expectations by qualifying from our group. The hurdle of Hall 11 stood in our way next, but our winning mentality and determination surfaced yet again, and Hall 5 contract bridge team valiantly overcame this obstacle. 52-29, semi-finals! Our next opponent, Hall 16, though, proved too high a hurdle to leap over. Nevertheless, this breathtaking run to the semi-finals will also be remembered. Well done, Contract Bridge Team!
Photography Wan Zhi Yong
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Bryan Tee
Scrabble(Semi-Finalist) With the victory of our Boggle team, the morale of our Scrabble team greatly soared, achieving even better results as we emerged as a semi-finalist in the IHRG. Since boggle and scrabble require players to have a huge word bank, it is likely that the opponents would be similar. The Scrabble team was viewed as a dark horse in the competition. We performed beyond expectations by winning six out of seven games in the qualifying round to become the second seed in our grouping. The team faced Hall 3 (who eventually emerged Scrabble Champion) in the semifinals and lost by 1-4. The board that won was played by the pair comprising of Herrick Ong and Syahid Mohamed whose chemistry led them to the most wins in the team for the entire competition.
Leow Hou Teng International Chess(Semi-Finalist) With Hall 5 having already achieved our best ever recreational ranking of recent years, our International Chess Team – consisting of captain K Luon, Rohit, Nofendy, Clarence, YeXin, Bryan and Joel – went into the roundrobin stage with confidence surging from our blood. Making our mark with a convincing 5-0 thumping of hall 15, we shocked opponents with our new-found strength. Murmurs of “Hall 5 is scary, every player is like Rohit (our capped player)” circulated the IH arena. Our winning streak continued the next day, holding our nerve to pull off narrow victories against strong opponents, including the critical victory over defending champion Hall 1; stamping our authority over our group – undefeated and top of table. Alas, like all fairytales, we succumbed in the semis against Hall 6 despite a close fight.
“We are very pleased with the results. I would like to thank all captains and players for their effort and commitment.” Tan Ming Jie, 24th JCRC Recreational Secretary
“Next year, Finals!” said Hall 5 I-chess team in unison.
Bryan Tee
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Inter-Hall Games Fivers, we have done it again! Being part of the IHG 2011 Sports was definitely an experience. Our players defended their title, created new records and made history! Great job and congratulations to all fiVers! Personally, I feel really blessed to be both a hall player and a supporter. When I am playing, I get to experience the undying cheer from our fellow fiVers and when I am a supporter, I get to witness our players fighting to do the hall proud. Let us reminisce the IHG’2011 experience by hearing what the captains have to say after the season.
Basketball Female-Ying Qian
Swimming
‘IHG is a brand new experience for me and I feel that everyone fought well together as a team. I hope everyone enjoyed themselves as much as I did! Special thanks to all the girls who went down for training, our coach Jia Hao and lastly, our supporters! To me, everyone is a winner!’
Kudos to our photographer, Zhi Yong who volunteered to swim last minute when there was a lack of swimmers. The swimmers definitely swam their hearts out for hall 5. Great job people!
Basketball Male- Jia Hao ‘It was great to be the captain of Hall 5 Basketball this time round again. Although we did not manage to get into the quarters this year, I felt that the team did fought hard and displayed great team spirit. I believe we can do Hall 5 proud next year. Let’s work hard for the next IHG!’
Netball - Eirene ‘Despite facing tough competitors in the preliminaries, the high morale and positive attitude of the twenty plus strong team gave us all an unforgettable experience.’
Road Relay- Shawn ‘I am honored to be the Hall 5 Road Relay captain as it allowed me to improve myself and to bring glory to the hall at the same time. Also, the dedication of the runners when they ran their hearts out during the event was a testament to their love for Hall 5!’
Softball- Alvin Softball in Hall V has always been beyond Ordinary through the Friendships we forged during Trainings and matches we have been through together. Be part of the team next year And I promise it will be a Life changing experience for you. Love softball in Hall V.
Squash- Marvin ‘It has been of great joy for me to have played with such a wonderful team of squash players. Personally I would like to thank Yeow Leong for coaching the team. All in all, it has been a delight managing this team and I hope that we will continue to play for Hall 5 next year.’
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Table Tennis- Hui Min ‘An enormous thank you to the table tennis peeps for all the hard work they have put in. You guys are the best! IHG is one of the yearly highlights of hall life and I am really glad to be part of it, may we get stronger every year!’
Takraw- Ming Xi ‘The fun, friendship and laughter have made all the countless training sessions worthwhile. Indeed, it has been a real pleasure to have trained and competed with this batch of takraw players and I hope that you guys had a fantastic experience too. Hall 5 for the win!!’
Tennis- Kai Jie ‘I would like to thank all who came for my trainings despite the insanely early timings of 8 am. While we didn’t reach the quarterfinals I am glad that everyone got a chance to play and have fun :)’
Track- Dominicus ‘Participating in IHG track has taught me to persevere, push forward and never give up. I hope all my fellow trackers have an invaluable lesson and experience as well. We will definitely come back stronger next year!’
Volleyball Female- Amanda ‘I am very thankful to the volleyball girls for their commitment towards volleyball. Our team would not be complete without any single one of us. Our team has put up a really good fight this year and I believe we will go far in IHG 2012.’
Friendship Ignite the Passion Valiance Enthusiasm RelentlessSupport
Volleyball Champions! Yes, they did it again! Our volleyball (male) team managed to clinch the gold medals for two consecutive years! Back as defending champions this year, our athletes were under twice the amount of pressure as many held high expectations of them. In any case, the volleyball team did not disappoint. They lived up to expectations and maintained their legacy in Hall Five. Throughout the entire season, the volleyball team had displayed a steady and imperious performance. Their desire to bring glory to Hall Five had driven our athletes to perform their best, remaining unbeatable in the IHG. Their journey in defending the championship title was not without odds. This year, many halls came back stronger and hungrier for the gold medal. In the finals, we had a tough fight against Hall 3, who took every chance to score against us and defended vigorously. As we inched closer to the game point, Hall 3 fought back even stronger and was determined to turn the odds in their favour. Alas, the results proved that our volleyball team had the skills and stamina of a champion. In addition, their positive attitude and team spirit were certainly admirable. Indeed, our athletes had exhibited the courage and strength worthy of a champion. Despite the immense pressure, the team maintained their composure and fought valiantly.
“Hall Five cheers are loud and awesome! It really boosted our morale and kept us going when we were close to losing.” Yeo Kok How, Senior IVP player
Lastly, all these achievements would not have been possible without the unwavering support from all fiVers. Many came down to support the team and bombarded the volleyball court with their boisterous cheers game after game. As quoted from Kok How, the most senior IVP player in the team, “Hall Five cheers are loud and awesome! It really boosted our morale and kept us going when we were close to losing.” Once again, congratulations to the volleyball team! Thanks for all the commitment and for bringing glory to Hall Five!
Nicole Seah
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What a save! He has done it again for Hall 5! Star player from 1 year ago, Khyrul kept our championship dreams flying high. 5-3, Hall 5 advances! Next up, the impenetrable yellows. One year ago, the scoreboard read “Hall 3 – 3, Hall 5 – 1”. One year on, what will these numbers indicate? In a mere hour, the answer will appear. A unanimous look at the supporters, a unanimous roar of applause. “Hall 5 Hall 5 Hall 5, Jiayou Jiayou Jiayou!” Nothing in the world will stop these dedicated Fivers from putting all their heart and soul behind their champions.
Soccer 1st Runner-up!
Final Score: 1-0 One side appeared confident, over-confident; a starting XI of IVP players, defending their crown, the game a mere formality.
“We are the champions my friends, and we’ll keep on fightin’ till the end.” 17th Feb 2012– an eventful day. For senior players – a feeling of déjà vu. IHG soccer finals again, our nemesis –Hall 3 – once again. For the freshmen – a sea of yellow flooding the hot cauldron of SRC, but the mere presence of familiar black and white jerseys serve to calm their nerves. The atmosphere was unbearable for both players and supporters. Hall 5’s flag flew valiantly in the strong wind. Time came to a standstill as the evening breeze gradually subsided. 22 focused minds on the field, awaiting the beep of a whistle. Off the field, a further hundred pairs of eyes oozed confidence into their players.
Waterpolo Semi-Finalist
As I strolled along the poolside barefooted, polo balls flew along the pitch like grenades, and masses of bodies propelled forward like torpedoes. Despite the chilly wind blowing
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The black-and-white were more toned down, Captain Kenny looking to instill morale into the underdogs with a pep talk. At this final stage, morale and confidence trumps mere tactics and skill. 3 weeks ago, the creation of yet another miracle - the elimination of sports hall, Hall 16, with a combination of determination, strategies and luck. 90 minutes and 4 penalties had passed with little separating both sides. With the score tied at 2-2, goalkeeper Khyrul arched his body and stretched his arms, looking as intimidating as possible, and faced the third spot-kick taker of Hall 16. Khyrul seemed confident, more so than the penalty taker. The crowd held their nerve. The ball was struck with a sweet swipe from his left foot…
Hall 3 won. Two consecutive rounds of falling at the final hurdle. In sports, nobody remembers the runner-ups, and the champions bask in all the glory. Hall 3 are the champions, yet, Hall 5 soccer team are basking in the glory. For all the hope they have brought to us, for all the joy and excitement they have delivered, for walking along with fiVers to the final: A metallic trophy seems so insignificant, when you have captured The Hearts of Many.
Bryan Tee
against my eyes, it was difficult to not be attracted by the electrifying atmosphere in the SRC pool as Hall 5 Waterpolo team faced off against Hall 13 in an IHG quarterfinals match.
and finishes demonstrating teamwork and confidence in teammates secured this sweet victory. To the joy of supporters, Hall 5 water polo team – semi-finals!
As the saying goes, in times of adversity, heroes show their true colours. The Hall 5 spirit was shown through waves of applause from the supporters, encouraging our polo team on; even if momentarily we had lost our 2 goal lead.
Although eventually, our semi-finals opponent Hall 3 proved too great a hurdle to overcome, Hall 5 water polo team has already stamped our mark on the IHG arena.
Captain Bo Hui claimed his third goal of the match, and the cheers proved a massive morale booster for the team, as we started to gain the upper hand in the game. Not easing off despite our advantage, a string of passes
Summing it up in Bo Hui’s words, “IHG is really a time for fiVers to get together and enjoy the sports that they like. Passion drives the Hall 5 spirit!”
Bryan Tee
New Achievements SoftBall Females (Quarters) An additional reason for fivers to celebrate about IHG 2011, especially for the ladies would be that our female softball team has done us proud by fighting their way to quarterfinals. Their qualifying game to quarterfinals against Hall 12 was definitely a spine tingling one. The team started off leading by two points which then after, Hall 12 caught up and was then winning our team. It was really commendable for the players who kept their composure as well as confidence and focused on the game, which eventually led the team to their eventual win. Not only looking tough on the outside, our female players are also tough in the inside. Apart from the success of our softball girls, our hockey girls also showcased their determination and ruggedness against their strong opponents despite the downpour on their first match. Great fighting spirit ladies!
Tan Xue Qun
Rugby (Quarters) ‘The rugby team comprises of the most daring and hardworking individuals from hall. Despite tough trainings, tight training schedule, all the pain and sufferings, wounds and injuries, these daredevils fought hard, never gave up, and together, we made history.’-Kelvin rugby captain Anyone who saw our rugby players in action during the IH games would definitely nod in agreement on what Kelvin has said. On their journey to quarter finals they faced setbacks; losing their first game against hall 12 and players getting injured but they learned, strategized and didn’t lose hope. Giving all they have got they earned themselves a win against hall 9 in their second game and had a sweet revenge against hall 12 in their third game. In their quarterfinal game they went against the defending champion Hall 3 but they displayed great fighting spirit and fought till the very last second. Applause for our rugby players!
Tan Xue Qun Hockey (Male) (Quarters)
Badminton (Quarters) Our badminton team has done us proud by securing a position in the Top 8! Our players trained hard and their efforts paid off as they clinched victory in 2 out of 3 matches in the preliminary rounds, successfully advancing into the quarterfinals. The quarterfinal match was exceptionally challenging for us as we were up against Hall 2, who was the champion last year. However, our warriors maintained their composure and gave their best. It was a hard-fought match, particularly so for the female singles game, where Mathea Goh wrestled for the game point at 20-20, leaving the audience all tensed up. Although we eventually lost by a narrow margin of 3-2 against Hall 2, we are proud of all the achievements they have attained. Well done fiVers!
Our Hockey (M) team cruised into the quarter-finals after emerging triumphant in 2 out of 3 games in the preliminary rounds. These achievements did not come easy as they faced a strong opponent, Hall 3 in their first match and conceded defeat. However, the boys held their heads high and ‘swept’ their way to victory in the next two games. In the quarter-finals, after several attempts to narrow the margins, we eventually conceded to Hall 9 with a score 2-0. The team spirit and sportsmanship displayed in the games were certainly worthy of mention. Something particularly commendable would be the commitment of our captain/coach, Felix Ong, who had put in tremendous effort in organizing the trainings and motivating the team. Once again, congratulations Hockey boys!
Nicole Seah
Nicole Seah
“Despite tough trainings, tight training schedule, all the pain and sufferings, wounds and injuries, these daredevils fought hard, never gave up, and together, we made history” Kelvin Ang, Rugby Team Captain
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Quindanze Hall Closing Dance Competition “For six minutes, the stage is ours. For six minutes, we own the world.” On 24 February, Quindanze took the stage at the Hall Olympiad Closing Ceremony 2012 to show the world that we have got what it takes. When the spotlight shone and the music started, our anticipation gave way to the excitement & adrenaline that rushed through our veins. We went on stage and we gave it our all. The audience’s cheers gave us the extra boost as we did our turns and poses. With a theme of liberation, we portrayed the roles of policewomen, prisoners and villains to the best of our efforts. Of course, as the Chinese idiom goes, “a minute onstage comes with ten years of effort backstage.” The intensive practices that the dancers went through brought us to where we are today. During practice, we learnt to dance, pose and walk (albeit in a slightly risqué manner), but most important of all, we learnt more about each other and we had great fun.
VIKINGS Hall Opening Cheerleading Competition 8 February 2012 was the eventful day where cheerleading teams from all sixteen halls compressed their trainings, hard work and passion into five minutes worth of performance. Our very own hall five cheerleading team, Vikings, put up an unforgettable performance for all. Based on the theme of The Nutcracker, Vikings performed a routine that comprised of a romantic ball room dance, variety of stunts, high energy chants and last but not least, a sweet proposal from the nutcracker to our adorable ballerina. It definitely wasn’t an easy journey for the team to put up this performance. In Vikings, there are year one members that started out as individuals who are totally new to cheerleading. There are squatters that specially travel to hall twice or more per week just for trainings. There are the sporty members who come for trainings after their already tiring sport trainings, graduating seniors who commit their time to trainings despite their final year projects and not forgetting the graduated seniors who always make it a point to join the team for trainings whenever they can to guide the juniors. It was definitely not easy coordinating trainings for such a diverse team. However, it was made possible
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with dedication and commitment from the members whom no matter what happens will do their best to attend trainings. When people question them what kept them motivated this is what they say: ‘ Whenever running routine, I see all your faces, see you all running to position sweats dropping on the mats, I see a group of people trying so damn hard, bear so much pain to put up a good show, then I think to myself “No matter how much more, I must fight on, I must never disappoint them, those who are fighting so hard for me”. And I realised I want to cheer for all of you more than for anyone else.’ -Nghia ‘I think it is really this big family thingy that probably really makes us want to contribute to Vikings and work hard together with one another to fight together for our common goal… And it is really heart-warming to see all the efforts that everyone is putting in to keep this family going…’- Ser Kun Their efforts have definitely paid off by delivering a crowd entertaining performance that was posted on Youtube with over eleven thousand viewers. Great job Vikings!
Tan Xue Qun
Our instructors Bevan and Melise were with us in every step of the journey and the dance team cannot thank them enough. Of course, the same can be said for Stella and Yue huan, our dance captain and assistant cultural secretary, who put in extra effort to ensure that the team stays bonded and up to standard. Not to forget Roy, our graduated senior, who tirelessly travelled down from work to help us polish our moves despite his busy schedule. Just like any other team activity, our reward did not come easily. We had our share of tears and frustration, but it was also these moments that brought us even closer together. To many of us, dance used to be something foreign. However, the choice of stepping out of our comfort zones and embracing dance was a decision that we have no regrets for. As Yue Huan says, “I am glad for all the hard work that our instructors, seniors, and dancers have put in. It’s wonderful to share the same passion for dance with the team. I would like to thank each and every one for this beautiful memory.” Besides Yue Huan, one can also ask any quindancer about their experience in HOCC 2012 and believe it or not, their answer would consist of one word – “AWESOME”
Liu Kai Ying