Rapid reading

4. Sports DayA1. Read and decideRead the story quickly and decide on the following. You may discuss with your partner.

Characters: Their age: Their relations: Their nature: Place of the story: Duration of the story: Narrator of the story: Type of the story: Message of the story:

Sports DayTomoe’s Sports Day was held every year on the third of November. The

headmaster had decided on that day after a lot of research, in which he found out that the third of November was the autumn day on which it had rained the fewest times. Perhaps it was due to his skill in collecting weather data, perhaps it was just that the sun and clouds heeded his desire – that no rain should mar the Sports Day so anticipated by children, who had decorated the school grounds the day before and made all sorts of preparation. Whatever it was, it was almost uncanny the way it never rained on that day.

As all kinds of things were done differently at Tomoe, its Sports Day, too, was unique. The only sports events that were the same as at other elementary schools were the Tug of War and the Three-Legged Race. All the rest had been invented by the headmaster. Requiring no special or elaborate equipment, they made use of familiar everyday school things.

For instance, there was the Carp Race. Large tubular cloth streamers shaped and painted like Carp – the kind that are flown from poles in May for Boy’s Day Festival – were laid in the middle of the school grounds. At the signal, the children had to start running towards the carp streamers and crawl though them from head

end to the tail end and then run back to the starting point. There were only three craps – one red and two blue- so three children raced at a time. The race looked easy but was quite difficult. It was dark inside and the carps were long, so you could easily lose your sense of direction. Some children, including Totto-chan, kept coming out of the mouth, only to realize their mistake and hurriedly burrow inside again. It was terribly funny to watch because the children crawling backward and forward inside made the carp wriggle as if they were alive.

There was another event called Find-A-Mother Race. At the signal the children had to run toward a wooden ladder propped up on its side, crawl through it between the rungs, take an envelope from a basket, open it, and if the paper inside said for instance, “Sakko-chan’s’ mother,” they would have to find her in the crowd of spectators, take her hand, and return together to the finishing line. One had to ease oneself through the ladder with catlike grace or one’s bottom could get stuck. Besides that a child might know well enough who Sakko-chan’s mother was, but if the paper read “Miss Oku’s sister,” or “Mr. Tsue’s mother,” or Mrs. Kuninori’s son,” whom one had never met, one had to go to the spectators’ section and call in a loud voice, “Miss Oku’s sister!” it took courage. Children who were lucky and picked their own mothers would jump up and down shouting, “Mother! Mother! Hurry!” The spectators, too, had to be alert for this event. There was no telling when their names might be called, and they would have to be ready to get up from bench or from the mat where they were sitting, excuse themselves, and wend their way out as fast as they could to where someone’s child was waiting, take his or her hand and go running off. So when a child arrived and stopped in front of the grown-ups, even the fathers held their breath, wondering who was going to be called. There was little time for idle chitchat or nibbling food. The grown-ups had to take part in events almost as much as the children.

The headmaster and other teachers joined the children in the two teams for the Tug or War, pulling and shouting, “Heave-ho!” Heave ho!” while handicapped children, like Yasuaki-chan, who couldn’t pull, had the task of keeping their eyes on the handkerchief tied to the centre of the rope to see who was winning.

The final Relay Race involving the whole school was also different at Tomoe. No one had to run very far. All one had to do was to run up and down the semicircular flight of concrete steps leading to the Assembly Hall. At first glance it looked absurdly easy, but the steps were unusually shallow and close together. And

as no one was allowed to take more than one step at a time, it was quite difficult if you were tall or had large feet. The familiar steps, bounded up each day at lunchtime, took on a fresh, fun aspect on Sports Day and the children hurried up and down them shrieking gaily. To anyone watching from afar, the scene would have looked like a beautiful kaleidoscope. Counting the top one there were eight steps in all.

The first Sports Day for Totto-chan and her classmates was a fine day just as the headmaster had hoped. The decorations of the paper chains and gold stars made by the children the day before and the phonograph records of rousing matches made it seem like a festival.

Something amazing happened on Sports Day Takahashi, who had the shortest arms and legs and was the smallest in the school, came first in everything. It was unbelievable. While the others were still creeping about inside the carp, Takahashi was through it in flash, and while the others only had their heads through the ladder, he was already out of it and running several yards ahead. As for the Relay Race up the Assembly Hall steps, while the others were clumsily negotiating a step at a time, Takahashi – his short legs moving like pistons – was up them in one spurt and down again like a speeded up movie.

“We’ve got to try and beat Takahashi,” they all said.Determined to beat him, the children did their utmost, but try as they might,

Takahashi won every time. Totto-chan tried hard, too, but she never managed to beat Takahashi. They could outrun him on the straight stretches, but lost to him over the difficult bits.

Takahashi went up to collect his prizes, looking happy and as proud as a Punch. He was first in everything so he collected prize. Everyone watched enviously.

“I’ll beat Takahashi next year!” said each child to himself. But every year it was Takahashi who turned out to be the star athlete.

Now the prizes, too, were typical of the Head master. First prize might be a giant radish; Second Prize, two burdock roots; Third prize, a bundle of spinach. Things like that. Until she was much older Totto-chan thought all schools gave vegetables for Sports Day prizes.

In those days, most school gave notebooks, pencils, and erasers for prizes. The Tomoe children didn’t know that, but they weren’t happy about vegetables. Totto-chan, for instance, who got some burdock roots and some onions, was

embarrassed about having to carry them on the train. Additional prizes were given for various things, so at the end of Sports Day all the children at Tomoe had some sort of vegetable. Now, why should children be embarrassed about going home from school with vegetables? No one minded being sent to buy vegetables by his mother, but they apparently felt it would look odd carrying vegetables home from school.

A fat boy who won a cabbage didn’t know what to do with it.“I don’t want to be seen carrying this,” he said, “I think I’ll throw it away.”The headmaster must have heard about their complaints for he went over to

the children with their carrots and radishes and things.“What’s the matter? Don’t you want them?” he asked. Then he went on.

“Get your mothers to cook them for you for dinner tonight. They’re vegetables you earned yourselves. You have provided food for your families by your own efforts. How’s that? I’ll bet it tastes good!”

Of course, he was right. It was the first time in her life, for instance, that Totto-chan had ever provided anything for dinner.

“I’ll get Mother to make spicy burdock!” she told the headmaster, “I haven’t decided yet what to ask her to make with the onions.”

Where upon the others all began thinking up menus, too describing them to the headmaster.

“Good! So now you’ve got the idea, “he said, smiling so happily his cheeks became quite flushed. He was probably thinking how nice it would be if the children and their families ate the vegetables while talking over the Sports Day events.

Glossary:Wriggle: twist and turn bodyWend: moves/travel slowlySpurt: sudden increase in speed

A2. Read the extract and answer the following questions:1. When was the sports day celebrated?2. Make a list of the sports events that are referred to in the story.3. In what way was the race not very difficult?4. How is the event ‘Find A Mother Race’ performed?

5. Who were supposed to be the lucky children?6. What task was given to the handicapped children? Why?7. What sports event did the headmaster and other teachers join?8. Why was the Final Relay Race different?9. What made the sport s day seem like a festival?10.What did the children try to do their utmost? With what result?11.What was given to the children as prizes?12.Why were additional prizes given for various things?

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