Bronze medal boost
Active pupils at an East Kilbride primary school showed off their sporting prowess.
Our Lady of Lourdes Primary competed in the South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture sports hall athletics final at the town’s John Wright Sports Centre.
The top two teams from Hamilton, East Kilbride, Larkhall, Cambuslang and Clydesdale were all competing against each other for the top three places in the region.
Our Lady of Lourdes, coached by class teacher Elizabeth Shields, took along a team of eight boys and girls – a mix of pupils from primaries six and seven – after qualifying in second place in the East Kilbride sports hall scoring final in January.
The children produced a fantastic performance in the obstacle relay, demonstrating great teamwork.
In the boys’ and girls’ relay races, the kids showed real grit and determination to achieve great results in their heats – mostly placing first in each one.
In the field events of long jump, speed bounce, vertical jump and chest push, each child gave their all and pushed themselves to the limit, achieving many personal bests.
It was a very close call in the end and with a total of 830 points, Our Lady of Lourdes were confirmed as bronze medallists, just missing out on the silver which went to St Bride’s (Cambuslang). The winners were East Kilbride’s St Kenneth’s.
Our Lady of Lourdes head teacher Eileen Brady said: “We were absolutely delighted to be in the top three teams in South Lanarkshire and very proud to get to this stage of the competition. It is the first time we have ever qualified for this event and to come out with a bronze medal was amazing.
“The dedication, commitment and sportsmanship of the Our Lady of Lourdes pupils was outstanding in the lead-up, training and throughout the competition.”