Dooooodss

It's nationals in 2 days, and no matter how much i have grumbled, cursed and raged for the past month, theres nothing that can describe how i feel about it. I know we've heard jairus' cries for blood and passionate pleas for us to put in our all countless times, and this in comparison may seem like just another pointless rallying call or pathetic attempt at a motivating speech from a much less sexy source, BUT I REALLY HOPE YOU GUYS WILL READ THROUGH THIS. I may seem imperiously hypocritical and skeptical at times, and i don't often talk of wdv spirit or Rafflesian pride or blah, but for the first time since my epic inter primary school chess championship (open category) 2002, I'M FUCKING PUMPED UP. in fact maybe even a little more.

Over the past year we've grown as a team, from a bunch of immature j1s who thought doing a billion chin ups made them champions, to a seasoned group of j2s who have probably not touched the chin up bar in quite a while, but now know what true champions are truly made up of. And thats us guys, champions.

Yes, so what if some of us screwed up NJCC(pointed glance at myself), so what if some of us think jiaolian's just putting us in our event for kicks, or that we don't even stand a chance against the might of NJ/AC/megamjmonsters. The fact that we can pull on our jersey with the crest of Raffles, row till our lungs are exploding for our school, and vindicate the year of blood and sweat we have sacrificed, should be more than enough to motivate us to give our best. And just think, whether we are first, third, or knnccb last, you'll hear the cries of raffles and your team mates shouting your name as you cross the finishing line. Which other school can say that. NJ finshes to the polite applause of uninterested bystanders, AC come in first to the national team coach going "that was 80percent not 100percent", and mj probably tops off their efforts with a nice 1.5l bottle protein shake at the end.

We've all seen chinks letter and i think its uber inspiring. He tells us that while getting back our 3rd placing is super important, there are other more important things. Honestly i couldn't agree more. i know that on a personal note, making semis let alone finals for my events are a long shot, but who the hell cares. If at the end of the race i am tearing, dying, struggling to breathe, gasping for air as i try to tell james i love you bitch,or even capping with exhaustion, i will know that i have done my best and even if it was not enough, i will have no regrets. I will jst climb on to shore and shout like a crazy mofo for our k4, watching as jong moves his jaw like some guailan chainsaw with a zombie-like glint in his eye.

Why? because when all this is over and we become fair fat wussies, we're gonna remember these sort of things. We're not gonna go "eh, marcus, remember the time i did sixtytrillion 30stroke starting burst" or "eh remember when zhengxiao did 20 seconds for his 200m?". Nope, all those will be forgotten. Instead, we'll recall with fondness the time JP raped jairus in his cubicle, when eugne educated us sexually, when qianwei showed us those hairless armpits. Thats what makes us a team, and thats what i'm gonna be thinking about when i finish my last race for raffles. Every single stroke you are going to take is no longer for yourself, but for the guys who have gone the whole way with you, fought the good fight, battled to the very end. As you near the last two buoys and last 15 strokes, you're gonna know who you're rowing for. With each stroke, you're gonna dedicate it to the one guy that made your journey so much better at the expense of himself.

Jairus.
Kenneth.
Marcus.
John Paul.
James.
Jong.
Zhengxiao.
Stuart.
Chuanyaw (ok i wont think of myself lah but i wanna write my name shuddup).
Qianwei.
Changzhong.
Leonard.
Quanwei.
Eugene.
Ansai.

And when you finish, these very people are gonna be standing on the shore, looking into your eyes. Proud of you for doing your best, for not giving up. I know each and everyone of us is gonna do this, give everything and hold back nothing, and in so doing, render the result no longer important. Not because we are still more handsome, but because no one can tell us oh shit if you had just put in a little more effort, or wlau if you hadn't started to slow down at the end. Because we've done our best, and if thats not enough than nothing ever will be.

Remember our team contract. Medals and glory are transient, your legacy as a Raffles Canoeist is forever. What legacy? Sure, no ones gonna remember your name 20 years down the road unless you totally rape the entire macritchie and do a monstrous 122 for k1500 breaking all existing world records, but who the hell cares. The legacy you leave, will be an indelible imprint on yourself. When you're a lao ah pei doing vocal screaming exercises along the shore of macritchie in abt 5decades time, you'll see nelo's and peishengs flying down the lanes, and you'll smile to yourself.


Hell yes. Been there, done that.