The Wycombe Abbey Sporting Year
13 July 2022 - All
When I look back at the last ten months of sport, I am proud of all that the pupils have achieved, the support given by visiting teachers and the dedication of the PE staff. We have seen success come in many forms and here are just a few noteworthy mentions.
Three out of four Netball teams were crowned District Champions, all our Lacrosse teams reached the knockout stage of the National Schools Championships and our Swimmers placed 7th at the National Bath and Otter Cup Gala. Junior and Intermediate Cross Country teams placed 5th at Regional Finals and the Fencing team placed 2nd overall at Public Schools. The Tennis team will be competing in the LTA National Finals and our Athletics team qualified for the regional round of the Track and Field Cup. Many pupils have also achieved individual success this year and should be congratulated. Francesca (UVI), Caterina (LV), Lily (UVI), Isabella (UV) and Tori (LVI) are currently in America, along with Miss Ruby Smith, representing their countries at the Lacrosse World Championships. Pippa (UIII) and India (UIV) have been selected to represented GBR in Sailing events this term, and Sarah (UVI) was crowned Public Schools Champion in Fencing. Jasmine (UIV) jumped an impressive 1m 68 in High Jump and earned a place at the English Schools Finals and Annabelle (UIV) will compete in 16 events at the British Swimming Nationals later this summer.
Whilst this list is long, it is only a small snippet of the excellence demonstrated by our pupils. Medals have been won which is fantastic, but what I would like our pupils to truly cherish are not the material trophies of success, rather the lessons that they have learnt, the memories they now have, and the mistakes they have made. While making mistakes is not always easy, being prepared to make them shows trust in your teammates, your teachers, and the path you are following. Mistakes are an important aspect of developing a skill, be that technical, tactical, physical or mental. I want to encourage all pupils to challenge themselves and take risks.
We are delighted with the number of pupils who regularly take part in co-curricular sport, be this extra lessons, squads, clubs or companies. All pupils have balanced their busy academic and co-curricular schedules to attend these activities each week with much success. One of my personal highlights, was seeing the dance captains embrace the change in the performance calendar with five dance performances throughout the year. Collaborating with the Drama and Music departments during both 125 Live! and the Dove Day Review Show was brilliant. We are looking forward to building on this further, being creative and innovative in future years.
House spirit and competition never fails to bring a smile to my face on a Monday afternoon in House Games, and this was highlighted even more with the recent Tug of War competition on Dove Day. The pupils displayed enthusiasm, energy and dynamism in their approach with plenty of smiles, laughs and a few falls. Pupils of all ages came together for this event to see who was crowned champions. Sports Leaders is another aspect of the PE programme that girls thoroughly enjoy. Throughout this course they serve as both leaders, role models and learners. Their development of new skills and confidence is an area we are proud to be part of. Through this qualification, pupils often mention and appreciate the challenges staff face, increasing the respect between teacher and pupil.
2021-2022 has been a fantastic year of sport at Wycombe Abbey. I would like to encourage everyone this summer to be active, try something new, and enjoy making more sporting memories with friends and family.
Fiona Gee
Acting Director of Sport
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