From Feb. 2 to Feb. 7, UHS ASB hosted Unilympics. An annual tradition for over a decade, this competition between classes brought excitement and class spirit to the forefront. Each class competed in events to earn points, which, along with posters, social media publicity and sportsmanship, were tallied to determine a final score. In the end, the freshmen placed fourth, the sophomores placed third, the seniors placed second and the juniors placed first, winning the Unilympics overall.
This year’s events were Family Feud on Monday, Futsal on Tuesday, Super Smash Bros. on Wednesday, Basketball on Thursday and Dodgeball on Friday. After the events were finalized, the first step in preparation was publicity. It was the class leaders’ responsibility to promote the event schoolwide on social media.
“My vice presidents and I helped organize the event by filming promotional videos for additional points,” Senior Class President Sage Weinberg said. “It was exciting to challenge the juniors for views on Instagram.”
Next, each class selected its own roster for these events via online sign-ups. Students were eager to leverage their strengths to represent their class.
“I would always play Super Smash Bros. with my older brother and sister,” senior Ameen Gish said. “That’s why I was excited to sign up since freshman year.”
Behind the scenes, an equally important task was underway. Class leaders organized the creation of spirit posters to be placed around the school, using their signature color to make their mark. Freshmen were blue, sophomores were yellow, juniors were pink and seniors were black.
“I think our class really came together when working on our posters,” Sophomore Captain Ethan Shapiro said. “All of our yellow-themed designs looked really good. We had a really good council, and most importantly, also a lot of participation outside.”
Participation wasn’t limited to students. Teachers competed against students during the Family Feud event.
“Something that surprised me was [that] the teachers were beating us,” sophomore Aaron Calayclay said. “I don’t think we scored a single point.”
During the events themselves, the energy was incredibly intense. Cheers filled the gym and blacktop when goals or saves occurred. This hype and class spirit helped reduce competition-related stress and strengthen the atmosphere.
“I would always feel the adrenaline pumping [while] walking into a match,” Gish said. “I really wanted to win, but also I felt like I needed to put on a good match for the people watching.”
By the end of the week, the junior class won Family Feud, Super Smash Bros. and Dodgeball, while the senior class won Futsal and placed second for Dodgeball. The sophomores placed second for Basketball, and the freshmen placed second for Futsal and Super Smash Bros. Although many people were excited to hear the final results, the takeaway from this event extended past the scores.
“I think a big part of a competition like this is just supporting one another, even though there are competitors,” Shapiro said. “They’re not our enemies. That’s just kind of getting into the spirit of what it means to be a Trojan.
Overall, Unilympics this year was a successful event. The class spirit that emerged was powerful, showing that this UHS tradition is here to stay.
