RANAU: The 51st Northern Zone School Sports Council (MSS) Athletics Championship was held for two days at the Ranau Sports Complex on 11 and 12 February, bringing together young primary school athletes in the spirit of sportsmanship with the theme “One Determination, One Goal.”
The annual championship continues to be an important platform in unearthing and polishing sports talent at the grassroots level, in addition to building discipline, healthy competitiveness and team spirit among school students in the Northern Zone of Ranau district.
A total of nine schools participated, namely Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Lohan, SK Bongkud, SK Perancangan, SK Narawang, SK Poring, SK Sagiban, SK Napong, SK Langsat and SK Kirokot.
Throughout the championship, the athletes displayed energetic performances in various track and field events, thus enlivening the atmosphere of the competition with the strong cheers of teachers, parents and school residents who were present to support.
In the overall results, SK Lohan emerged as the champion with 16 medals, followed by SK Bongkud in second place with six medals, while SK Perancangan ranked third. SK Sagiban won the opening parade competition, while the Best Mascot award went to SK Lohan.
For individual awards, the Sportsman title was won by Jydean Yohanes Edward from SK Lohan, while Sportswoman was won by Cherrysenn Olsen from SK Bongkud after each displayed excellent performance throughout the tournament.
The opening ceremony was officiated by Ranau District Deputy Education Officer, Vincent Sabin, who represented Ranau District Education Officer, Barizah Mohammad Kahar.
In his speech, he said that the organization of the tournament not only aimed to unearth talent to be promoted to a higher level, but also to build the character of students through the application of the values of discipline, leadership, cooperation and a healthy competitive spirit.
He also stressed that the tournament serves to foster unity and camaraderie across schools and communities, in line with the desire to produce students who are balanced in terms of physical, emotional, spiritual and intellectual aspects as outlined in the National Education Philosophy.
Meanwhile, the Headmaster of SK Kirokot and Chairman of the Management, Jeffery Siga, expressed his appreciation to all parties for their commitment and cooperation in making the tournament a success and hoped that its organization could continue in the future.
