Olympic Poetry Corner
The Olympic Games is a fortnight long festival of sport held every four years. In 2012, the Olympics are coming to London. To celebrate the London Olympics through Literacy at St Paul’s we are going to hold an Olympic/Sporting Poetry competition. Students can use the themes or values, events or athletes from the Olympics to stimulate their poetic creation.
You can make it funny or thoughtful, exciting or gloomy and we will publish a selection of poems here on the OLYMPIC POETRY CORNER. There will be special prizes for the best poems.
See below a few already published examples:
Brothers
Big
Strong
Billy
Mathews
Is
Very
Very
Tall,
Which
Makes
Him
Perfectly
Suited
For
Playing
Basketball
Though his brother who is short
is also good at sport
By Peter Cole
Chosen by Catherine Adedun Year 8
Too Young
My dad says I’m still a little too small
To compete in the London 2012s.
So, at the age of eight,
I’ve decided to wait
And keep my dreams on the shelves.
In another four years (or maybe four more)
Is the date I’m now planning to go-
And each time we have tea
Dad announces to me:
“On your marks, Mark, get set, grow!”
By Mike Barfield
Chosen by Enoch Osei Year 7
Olympic Fun & Games
The Torch Shines
The Games of Life
The Olympic Games
The Games of Life
Not about trouble
Not about strife
It’s not the winning,
It’s the taking part,
It’s all about
What’s true to heart
It’s not the loosing,
It’s all nations uniting
It’s not about war
but peace inviting
Not about trouble
Not about strife
Just the Olympics
The Games of life
Leni Sands
Chosen by Whitney Grayston 8E
Dreams
Dreams of silver, bronze, and gold
Shine upon a torch of old
Five colors, locked in rings
Symbolize unity, pride of kings
Centuries competing to be the best
All play hard, with four years rest
Winter, summer, two by two
More a dream as it grew
From Athens, Greece shall shine the light
Of the Olympians' athletes' might
Chosen by Amy O'Rourke 8E
Putting the Shot
Tomorrow I may put the shot,
Or on the other hand, may not;
For yesterday I put the shot,
But where I put it, I forgot.
Colin West
Wrong Jump
I ran, leapt, swung up high,
over the heads of passers-by,
over the traffic, the lampposts, the wires,
the rooftops, the chimneys, the towers and spires,
the House of Commons, of Lords, Big Ben,
the top of the London Eye, and then -
down I tumbled, bump-bump-bump,
to the gloomy boom of the judge: “No jump!”
But why?” I cried, “I jumped to the sky!”
“Wrong jump,” he sighed. “This is long, not high.”
Kate Williams
Too Young
My dad says I’m still a little too small
To compete in London 2012’s
So, at the age of eight,
I’ve decided to wait
And keep my dreams on the shelves.
In another four years (or maybe four more)
Is the date I’m planning to go –
And each time we have tea
Dad announces to me:
“On your marks, Mark, get set, grow!”
Mike Barfield
