What if Bullseye won the 20th Anniversary Sports Day 2024 and Unleash Sports Day 2025.

The 20th Anniversary Sports Day, which took place on 2nd July 2024, was to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Nobel International School. The year 2024 was also special because it marks a decade since the 2014 Bullseye Sports Day victory on 9th April 2014, which was the catalyst of so many Bullseye victories between 2014 and 2023 in the Sports Day, Nobel Cup and Founder's Run, hence the double celebration of two major anniversaries. A last minute intervention by Touchdown saw it reclaim the championship from Bullseye, which was the defending champion and also leading the Sports Day tally for 2024. 

The Unleash Sports Day 2025 took place on 28th February 2025 at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium. This Sports Day was to be a redemption of Bullseye following its loss in the 20th Anniversary Sports Day. The quick comeback, was, however, foiled, by Slamdunk, which succeeded in its inaugural Sports Day championship bid. All three houses sent Bullseye packing in spectacular fashion to its last place position. 

Both Sports Days, in hindsight, if won by Bullseye, would see the team crowned as the ultimate champion. The loss of Bullseye meant the loss of various opportunities for redemption and also prestige. So how did we get here?

SUCCESS AND PERSISTENCE

In 2019, Bullseye won the Sports Day in spectacular fashion. 22nd March 2019, the date of the 2019 Sports Day, was etched in memory for various reasons, such as the first successful attempt of an ex student to influence the scores to Bullseye, and a strong comeback after its losses in the 2017 and 2018 Sports Day, which succeeded a previous three-year victory streak from 2014 to 2016 in the Sports Days. 

Originally, 2019 was to make up for what was lost. This victory was to succeed in achieving Bullseye's fourth Sports Day victory. Soon, year upon year, using various analogies, Bullseye succeeded in achieving five victory years, from 2019 to 2023. This also replicated the originally planned four year victory streak, with an improvement to five years. First planned for 2017, the vision was achieved six years later, alongside the attainment of every suggestion made by Bullseye members pre-2020, prior to the outbreak of Covid 19.

Had plans succeeded, the current 2019-2023 victory streak could have had been even bigger and bolder. It could even be larger and more ambitious than ever before. Let's take a look at some of the plans for 2024, 2025 and 2026, the losing years of Bullseye, should fate consign them to the Bullseye victory list. 

20TH ANNIVERSARY SPORTS DAY, 2ND JULY 2024

This Sports Day was meant to be a celebration of Nobel International School's 20th Anniversary since its establishment in 2004. It was to celebrate the school's success with a grand fanfare of sorts. But this Sports Day also was the importance of another anniversary. Ten years prior, Bullseye won its first ever Sports Day victory during the 10th Annual Sports Day in 2014. That Sports Day paved the way for a multitude of victories in the Nobel Cup and also the Founder's Run. The success of Bullseye meant that every year excluding 2017 and 2018, Nobel had been besieged with Bullseye victories. 

Bullseye's members had been eying this Sports Day since 2021, when the lockdowns kept people bored and some took the opportunity to plan for the future. This Sports Day was to celebrate not just Nobel, but Bullseye as well. Hence, it was billed as the crown jewel of all Sports Days should it be added to the five-year roster of Bullseye's successes. Remembering the first ever Sports Day victory was also to pay tribute to all its members who had walked with Bullseye in its highs and lows. 

The prelude to the 20th Anniversary Sports Day was positive. Bullseye had won all competitions in 2022 and 2023. It had snatched up tens of thousands of pro-athletes and was performing at its best in the 2023 Sports Day. In 2024, it won the Founder's Run on 27th April that year. Then, it performed well in the athletics events and caused a lead in the Sports Day tally. Even during the opening ceremony of the 20th Anniversary Sports Day, Bullseye had a large lead shown on the scoreboard. 

Then, as the competitions got underway, Bullseye's performance came crashing down to third place. Dozens of Bullseye members fizzled out of gas as they sprinted down the track, coughing on dust kicked up by their opponents, who sprinted off to medals and Instagram posts. Fast forward three hours later, Mr Meshach David, the chief of the PE, Sports and Recreation department, begun to announce the winners of the events. Then, he begun to announce the final tally of the 20th Anniversary Sports Day. He named Homerun as the 4th placeholder and Bullseye as the third. Loud screams and cheers erupted from those two houses, before a pin drop silence and a soundtrack of heartbeat thumps bursted from the loudspeakers. 

"The champion of the 20th Anniversary Celebration Sports Day, of Nobel International School, goes to.....Touchdown!" he cried, announcing Slamdunk and Touchdown as second and champion finishers. The Touchdowners erupted in cheers of joy, as Nishantiny, the house captain of Touchdown, was ushered to the podium to receive the Champion House Trophy from Auntie Clarine. Photographs of Touchdown's victory begun to make its rounds on social media, with Nobel International School's social media team posting big headlines of the victory of Touchdown in large, bold, graphic prints on the school's Facebook and Instagram feed. A multitude of photographs were posted online and in the days succeeding the 20th Anniversary Sports Day, ushering Touchdown with a much bigger fanfare compared to Bullseye. The crown jewel ended up away from Bullseye's radars. 

But let's stop for a second. Imagine if things had gone a different direction. Say it was 1pm at Panasonic Stadium Shah Alam. We arrived at the stadium. Practices were ongoing, and we showed a large banner we have made, to the Bullseye members, who laughed and cheered in excitement as they exited the field for a water break. Mind you, two Elementary students from Touchdown who were there for another track event there, were curious to look at it. Then, the opening ceremony begun, and the competitions started. All this was true, recorded and journalled. But instead of being treated to flunking performances from Bullseye members, imagine them bursting and breasting the finishing line first. Yes, I know, the last 4X100m race of Year 11 members was won by Bullseye. But imagine about 50 other races on the day repeating that very feat. Imagine what would have happened if, Mr Meshach mentioned another house instead of Bullseye, say, Touchdown, as the third place winner. Bullseye members would be anxious for the victory in that thumping beat. Then suddenly, Mr Meshach announcing Bullseye as the victor instead. 

The initial reaction would be, of course, shouts and cries of joy from Bullseye's members. Aiden Ooi would become the first house captain to lift the same trophy twice. This last happened in 2013 with Touchdown's captain that year, you know. Aiden, accompanied by his female captain, Soh Yu Yee, and their gender deputies, would march to receive the trophy and that crown jewel from Auntie Clarine. But for the students of old, this would be another achievement and an overstatement. This would have had extended the five-year victory streak from 2019 to 2023 to include the sixth year, 2024, the crown jewel in the entire streak of victories, across all victories. Imagine Bullseye being hailed by the Class of 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023. Mind you, so many alumni were there because no such Sports Day was held on such a massive scale with the march, dance and banner. Many of them graduated with no Sports Day held in Year 11, due to Covid 19. A victory of Bullseye would pay tribute to those who had worked hard for Bullseye's victory. We would also be claiming, of course, Chee Fooi Foon succeeding again. Critics would say this will give the impetus for forgery to be licensed, as fake letterheads dotted the 2023 Sports Day to create the Bullseye victory, under the purported name of Chee Fooi Foon, Guru Besar SJKC Shin Cheng (Harcroft). Those were presented to the Bullseye members, who believed the story. The end product was extra overexcitement, causing Bullseye to win. This would further embolden proponents of forgery, as this contributed to a Bullseye victory. 

Aristocrats in the management team would cite the victory of Bullseye as yet another ex-student orchestrated the victory. It was already so daunting to win 2019, and yet push alumni away from orchestrating it. Even more daunting, a victory streak soon followed, and to the vulgar mouths of the management members, Lau Wei Yiang, was to blame for this. In this real timeline, Mr Chan Lik Hoong (a senior management advisor), according to Mr Thomas (a retired English teacher), was to blame for Bullseye's loss. He'd hated Bullseye. He was taunted to resign by Mr Thomas, because he was accused of cheating to make Bullseye lose. In reality, Mr Thomas' words did not carry weight as Mr Chan did not run on the Sports Day. But Mr Thomas genuinely informed us that Mr Chan had informed him in 2020 that Bullseye was hated upon by him and the management members. That meant that in 2024, should Bullseye win the 20th Anniversary Sports Day, critics in the management would hold Lau Wei Yiang accountable for raising the crown jewel on the curriculum vitae of Bullseye. This name is already a household name across every single generation of Nobellians, from the first graduates to the new students studying in Nobel today. Teachers, new and old, know who he is. He had orchestrated so many victories to the extent his name pops up whenever the house is mentioned. He had also wished Joanna Lee Ming Yee, another student, a happy birthday. The rest of the year would be filled with grumbles from the management and his name instead will be plastered on social media feeds sentimenting the losing houses. Wei Yiang had accomplished winning Sports Day 2019 as an ex student following his graduation from Nobel in 2017. He had frequently visited Nobel, so his name will be plastered on the online messages instead of Mr Chan. Chan the Crook would instead be replaced with Lau the Loser.

Bullseye members young and old would celebrate this. In this timeline, Bullseye would have six victory years. It will make the longest victory streak ever in Nobel even longer. In fact, it is already the longest streak and the biggest project ever in Nobel. It will embolden everyone, especially Mr Thomas, whom he had called for Bullseye to win the 2024, 2025, 2026, 2027, 2028, 2029, 2030 and 2031 Sports Days to complete the Chinese zodiac. All animals in the winner's list of the Jade Emperor would have a Bullseye victory for themselves. It would also embolden Wei Yiang to make another victory. Lest we forget, speaking of victories, Bullseye's 2024 Sports Day victory would be the biggest crime of the century. It would also be the first three consecutive competitive sports victories after 2014, 2015 and 2016. The biggest benefit would be the current student Bullseye members. They will be emboldened to win as many years as possible. 

All this would've happened had things took a different turn. The management had attempted to block Bullseye with judging events, theorizing Bullseye winning all the competitions, and that subgraded to half of the total score. Then lump in the march, dance and banner victors of other houses, sniffling Bullseye's plans. The unbearable performance was what the management got surprised about. 

UNLEASH SPORTS DAY 2025, 28TH FEBRUARY 2025

This Sports Day can be translated into four scenarios; the present-day moment, an alternate future of Bullseye winning the 20th Anniversary Sports Day and also the 2025 Sports Day, another alternate future of Bullseye winning the 20th Anniversary Sports Day but losing in 2025, and another showing Bullseye losing in 2024, but winning in 2025. Let me be clear; it will be more complicated to discuss, but we will take some time. 

After Bullseye lost the 20th Anniversary Sports Day, we are cast into a situation which will decide the fate of 2024; do we want that to be a scrapegoat year or not? Pardon my Malaysian slang, but let's be Malaysian a bit. When things change, humans find it hard to adjust. They will look to the past as the change occurs until time seals their comfort to move on. When translated to the loss of Bullseye, every Bullseye member will try to ponder the loss of Bullseye. It's hard for us to accept it, to be honest. We will look to the previous year which is won by Bullseye, in this case, 2023, to get by the 2024 loss, while also hoping for the 2025 Sports Day to come as quickly as possible, so that the loss can be reversed and business will restore as usual. If we win in 2025, it will be like as if Bullseye's victory had never ended.

Why? In 2023, we won the Sports Day. In 2024, we lost the Sports Day, so we miss 2023 and look back to it, thinking 2024 is 2023 and 2024 is a Bullseye victory. Even though in reality, Touchdown is the winner, but the mind will look back to Bullseye. Old is gold, they say, of the good old days. The mind will feel like Bullseye is the winner, and should Bullseye win in 2025, then everyone will say 2024 is the scrapegoat year because it was the odd one out due to a whole lot of nonsense things. Should Bullseye lose in 2025, we will be comfortable with Bullseye losing. Then, the momentum is gone. This is the effect of the scrapegoat year. We last experienced this in 2018 to decide the fate of 2017 as a scrapegoat year. It failed because Bullseye lost in 2018.

The 2025 Sports Day, aka Unleash, is the earliest Sports Day to ever have been held in Nobel International School's history, as it took place on 28th February 2025. The earliest Sports Day ever held prior to this was the 22nd March 2019 Sports Day for the Junior and Senior School during the International School age. If counting the earliest, it was March 11, 2011 for the Junior and Senior School and March 5, 2011, for the Elementary School. 

On 25th November 2024, Nobel International School published its 2025 Academic Calendar. A student, Azalea Wong, communicated this to us; I thank her for that. When the calendar was revealed to us, there were chants and blame towards Mr Chan Lik Hoong, who was suspected to be involved in the academic planning. He was believed to be persuasive in planting the date. The Management, as far as I know, had been pushing for Sports Day to be moved back to its original schedule of March/April to avoid affecting the IGCSE exams. While Mr Lew Wei Him, Mr Meshach David and Ms Praveen prefer a June/July setting, Mr Chan Lik Hoong clearly wanted the academic year clear of pomp and circumstance to avoid disrupting the concentration of students in academics. However, Puan Halimah was believed to have informed the Management to avoid the holy month of Ramadan and Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Some folks would need to concentrate on that for religious and cultural reasons. The win win solution was the holding of Sports Day in February. 

The Sports Day 2025 was quite short in terms of preparation and administration. Many students did not have time to practice and many were complaining how early Sports Day was. Despite the grouses, the Sports Day proceeded without interruption. To add some motivation to the Bullseye members, it was decided to incorporate, for me, Chinese New Year themes into our DIY banner to fulfill my friend Jason Leing's suggestion for Chinese New Year to be fused with Sports Day. This was suggested in 2019, but wasn't popularly adopted. We had decided to fulfill his wish in 2026. It was one of the last wishes to be adopted, of someone old and long ago. Jason was the 2017 Athletics Captain for Bullseye and was suspended on Sports Day 2017, being barred from the event for a disciplinary case. 

At the same time, SJKC Shin Cheng (Harcroft) was holding a Chinese New Year carnival, and they had very nice decorations, even better than shopping malls, especially with their cherry blossom trees. The new principal, Kuan Muk Lang, who had replaced Chee Fooi Foon in 2024, came up with this idea. I planned to use the carnival to build momentum ahead of Sports Day. Should the Sports Day title return to Bullseye, I planned to honor everyone during the 2026 Chinese New Year celebrations. 

Okay, we have talked a lot. After the Chinese New Year holidays, on 7th February, I returned to Nobel to pass a letter containing all the Bullseye plans to Lor Jia Qi, the 2025 Bullseye House Captain, via Ms Wendy Loo, a teacher assigned to Bullseye who teaches Global Perspectives for Year 7 and is a wonderful enthusiast of our big plans. A week later, Azalea Wong told us that Bullseye was leading first place and Touchdown, the 2024 winner, second. Slamdunk was third and Homerun last. It was a far cry from the 2024 results and also the 2025 Cheer Competition, which Bullseye finished last. We screamed and shouted. Then, we told Koh Khai Wen the results as we hailed all the principals' and Harcroft teachers' support. The letter to Jia Qi contained all our strategies, a website I created for Bullseye, and fake letters supporting Bullseye with the Harcroft logo from Chee Fooi Foon and Kuan Muk Lang. This was funny proof to pop up the victory. It was no surprise when a lot of critics aimed earfuls at this initiative, especially Ng Mee Kuen.

Nobel International School had announced Bukit Jalil National Stadium as the venue of the 2025 Sports Day. On 19th February, a Pre Sports Event took place at the Ampang Jaya Stadium, followed by a Sports Day Rehearsal on 20th February at Bukit Jalil. We went to the stadium to watch the rehearsal. 

We were about to be accompanied into the stadium by Ms Prema, our Elementary School class teacher. However, Ms Ingel said it was a closed event and we can't attend. We had to watch the whole thing outside the stadium.

This was a rehearsal attended by the Elementary School and the Junior and Senior School as it was to be the first combined Sports Day since 2013 for both schools. We waved our banner at the kids who cheered. A mother and her daughter in Year 1 from Bullseye were excited to see it. Then, we went to wave it at the Elementary School students from Bullseye gathered at the stadium balcony. They all cheered. As I went home, a RELA guard wrongly accused me of disturbance and threatened police action. Then, I went home via LRT whom the LRT staff suspiciously took a look at my PPE gear. Fortunately, we returned home without issue. 

Then, I proceeded to Khai Wen's house and then to Harcroft. Then we went home and were almost chased by Dog Aunty's dogs. After reaching home, Azalea sadly confirmed news Bullseye was last place and this time, Touchdown was first on the leaderboard. 

Sports Day soon came. The same performance occurred in 2025 as it did in 2024. The 2025 Sports Day took place about seven months plus since the 20th Anniversary Sports Day on 2nd July 2024, and about 15 months after the 2023 Sports Day on 20th November 2023. Then, Mr Meshach, once again, appeared and announced the winners of the march, dance and banner competition. The victors were same from 2024. Then, he announced Touchdown as the Elementary School's champion house and soon informed us he will be announcing the Junior and Senior School's Champion House. He invited everyone's attention to two large giant screens in the stadium which will display the numbers. Mr Meshach soon announced and revealed the last three digits of the scoreboard; the units, tenths and hundredths. The final number was yet to be announced. Bullseye appeared to have the highest score. When Mr Meshach revealed the final number, all houses had the number 1 as their final number except for Bullseye. This confirmed Bullseye as the last place winner and Slamdunk as the champion house, both for the first time. The house captains of Slamdunk were invited to retrieve the trophy from Auntie Clarine and ran around the field. The day ended with a soft, saddening but also depressing bust of emotion for us. We were last. 

What if, on the 2025 Sports Day, a sudden miracle happened? What if, for some reason, some mathematical calculation, which was highly unlikely, happened? What if there was a 1 on the Bullseye tally? We would be first. 

Instantly, Bullseye's members will scream. We would scream, too. Jia Qi would be the one lifting the trophy. But we would not be allowed to the field to take pictures with them. Bukit Jalil's rules were strict. We can't even bring our banner in, too. The 2025 Bullseye victory in this scenario will rationalize our case for fake letterheads, too. Ng Mee Kuen and Lim Chong Chee would, of course, complain and condemn.

Mr Thomas would soon request for Mr Chan Lik Hoong to be investigated for treason and suspicion of that scrapegoat year, 2024. It would be a great start and good feng shui to 2025. We had planned to declare holidays to celebrate Bullseye's victory, until 12th April, the Founder's Run. The victory run would in this case continue. But for Bullseye, it would celebrate all achievements and goals planned for 2024, but with a much lower fanfare, though. It would be the replacement for 2024.

If Bullseye had won in 2024, and also won again in 2025, the same case of both 2024 and 2025 would continue. Chee Fooi Foon and Kuan Muk Lang would be hailed as the biggest warriors ever. Mr Thomas would be emboldened to more successes of Bullseye. But if we won 2024 and lost 2025? Then the job might most likely be completed, after all, since the crown jewel is definitely with us. Either way, we would be reliving the Bullseye victories, especially if we won.

BONUS: 2026 IGNITE TELEMATCH GAMES, 13TH FEBRUARY 2026

When the 2026 Academic Calendar was made known to us, the first thing we checked was the date of Sports Day 2026. Instead, there was no Sports Day in 2026. The school had decided that the main focus of 2026 was to be a School Concert. This is the first concert for the Junior and Senior School since 2017. But the story of concerts will be for another time. Instead, Telematch and the Founder's Run were on the school calendar as sports activities. 

The arrangement was instantly criticized by the students regardless of team affiliation. They want the Sports Day, but the management appeared not to care, and crusaded on with the planned lineup. Sports Day would not return until 2027. It would be ten years since our IGCSE exams. It was a disappointment for the outgoing Year 11 students for 2026. 

The Telematch calendar begun with the election of Ong Zi Xin as Bullseye's 2026 House Captain. The team will this time have to face off against Teh Szi Wei, the house captain of Touchdown, Peter Tan, who heads Homerun, and Lim Xin Jie, who is commandeering Slamdunk. Zi Xin is assisted by Joel Tan as assistant captain. Despite the best efforts, Bullseye still lost the Telematch Competition. Imagine what would have happened if Bullseye won in 2026 anyway. It would achieve the unachieved in 2024 and 2025. Even if Bullseye won 2024 but lost 2025, it would be a redemption. A victory in 2024 and 2025 would see Bullseye definitely gunning to retain the Sports Day title, at least to say for now.