Page 44 - QARANC Vol 14 No 9 2014

42 QARANC THE GAZETTE
The Army Medical Services Athletics
The AMS Athletics championship is undoubtedly the most successful and celebrated sporting event in the Army Medical Service. It is no wonder the AMS Athletics team has grown from strength to strength over the years. As usual, the atmosphere at this year’s event venue was fiercely competitive and sensational.
The Department of Healthcare Education (DHE) for the first time filed an entry to compete in the event against the twelve permanent members of the AMSSU. Although there was uncontested morale at the DHE Camp,
all the odds were undoubtedly against us due to our numerical disadvantage and the lack of experience in the team. The team was however poised to make its presence felt and not just to make up the numbers.
Unlike our opponents from medical regiments, students from the DHE have other responsibilities that take priority over sports such as placement, lectures, assignments and examinations. As a result it was very challenging to parade all DHE’s potential medal winners to compete. A few alterations on the academic
calendar coupled with late injuries were equally massive blows to the team. Time constraints and unavailability of training equipment made it look almost impossible for the team to rub shoulders with the so called big ‘guns’ that turn up in numbers. In effect, we were doomed to be the ‘crying babies’ on paper.
But the support from the chain of command and the enthusiasm of the athletes was phenomenal. The presence of one of our unit PTIs among the officiating officials was very encouraging. This support made us feel that we were not alone and that our effort was recognised.
On average each athlete participated in at least four disciplines. Against the odds, DHE exhibited a spectacular masterpiece of an excellent start by winning the first gold medal of the competition (400m hurdles). The team progressed to secure its second gold medal in women’s high jump after beating the reigning AMS champion and the Army runners up. Both the men’s and women’s teams showcased an outstanding performance in the Tug-of-War. The determination and the passion to win something for DHE were remarkable. However both teams were outnumbered and lost narrowly at the semi-finals to the host team. In events such as steeple chase, long jump, javelin, hammer, shot, 100m, 100m hurdle and 200m, the story was not different. It was utterly fascinating to see our young athletes giving it all