Rigoball
by Eoin O'Mara
A new sport is being offered at P.S.6 – Rigoball! What is Rigoball, you may ask? Rigoball is basically baseball, but instead of a bat, the player will throw the ball instead of hitting it. Many are excited at the arrival of the sport at P.S.6; the idea of a new sport to try out for is very alluring. But no one fully knows all the information.
To inquire more knowledge, I visited Mr. Teddy Bernal (Mr. B), our P.E. teacher. I first asked Mr. B why he wished to have a new sport at P.S.6. “Well, initially, I did not want another sport at this time, but, in some ways, I’ve been forced to do it because there are a lot of families and students that are a little bit upset that they don’t get to be part of the team, you know, especially since we only have Track and Ultimate, and now we have something new, so this is a new way to open up certain possibilities.” My second question was that if all the students that didn’t get on Track or Ultimate would get on Rigoball. Mr. B responded that yes, every student would get on. “It’s only a fifth grade sport.” He added. “We are not up to the point of adding the fourth grade to the sport.” I then questioned why it would be only fifth grade. “Well, it’s the last chance for those who didn’t get on a P.S.6 sport to get on,” he replied.
Mr. Bernal also informed me that the sport would be played in the gym, and that there will be two teams. “As of now, we are prepared for two teams, but providing that more 5th graders sign up, that means we’d have to get more coaches in order for there to be a third team and a fourth team.” I then asked Mr. B if he would ever want to cut the sport in the future. “We thought carefully about this, and we tried to get every aspect into consideration, because, how do we foresee the future, say, 10 years from now? We made it so we do not have to change it.”
I then interviewed Wolff Gilligan, from class 5-302, to get a student’s point of view. My first question to Wolff was what he thinks of the new sport. “I think it’s a really good sport, and I really like it because it’s fun, you get good exercise, and people who don’t like baseball, but have a good arm, they can still play this.” I next asked him if he thought it was fair that it was only a fifth grade sport. “Ultimate and Rigoball are basically the same thing. You have to throw a ball, therefore meaning that the procedures to get on the team would not be very different at all.” Wolff also appreciates that Rigoball offers a chance for 5th graders who didn’t get on a team before. “If you do not get on in fourth grade, you still have a chance to get on the following year. Not so with fifth graders.”
My last interview was with Lily from class 4-328. I only asked her one question: if she was happy or sad that Rigoball is only a fifth grade sport. “I’m sad because it’s really fun to play and it’s not like the fourth graders can’t do it and the fourth graders can be just as sporty as fifth graders.”
Overall, Rigoball is a fun sport to play, though only for the fifth graders. That opinion is only to be decided by the students of P.S.6 themselves, and only themselves.
To inquire more knowledge, I visited Mr. Teddy Bernal (Mr. B), our P.E. teacher. I first asked Mr. B why he wished to have a new sport at P.S.6. “Well, initially, I did not want another sport at this time, but, in some ways, I’ve been forced to do it because there are a lot of families and students that are a little bit upset that they don’t get to be part of the team, you know, especially since we only have Track and Ultimate, and now we have something new, so this is a new way to open up certain possibilities.” My second question was that if all the students that didn’t get on Track or Ultimate would get on Rigoball. Mr. B responded that yes, every student would get on. “It’s only a fifth grade sport.” He added. “We are not up to the point of adding the fourth grade to the sport.” I then questioned why it would be only fifth grade. “Well, it’s the last chance for those who didn’t get on a P.S.6 sport to get on,” he replied.
Mr. Bernal also informed me that the sport would be played in the gym, and that there will be two teams. “As of now, we are prepared for two teams, but providing that more 5th graders sign up, that means we’d have to get more coaches in order for there to be a third team and a fourth team.” I then asked Mr. B if he would ever want to cut the sport in the future. “We thought carefully about this, and we tried to get every aspect into consideration, because, how do we foresee the future, say, 10 years from now? We made it so we do not have to change it.”
I then interviewed Wolff Gilligan, from class 5-302, to get a student’s point of view. My first question to Wolff was what he thinks of the new sport. “I think it’s a really good sport, and I really like it because it’s fun, you get good exercise, and people who don’t like baseball, but have a good arm, they can still play this.” I next asked him if he thought it was fair that it was only a fifth grade sport. “Ultimate and Rigoball are basically the same thing. You have to throw a ball, therefore meaning that the procedures to get on the team would not be very different at all.” Wolff also appreciates that Rigoball offers a chance for 5th graders who didn’t get on a team before. “If you do not get on in fourth grade, you still have a chance to get on the following year. Not so with fifth graders.”
My last interview was with Lily from class 4-328. I only asked her one question: if she was happy or sad that Rigoball is only a fifth grade sport. “I’m sad because it’s really fun to play and it’s not like the fourth graders can’t do it and the fourth graders can be just as sporty as fifth graders.”
Overall, Rigoball is a fun sport to play, though only for the fifth graders. That opinion is only to be decided by the students of P.S.6 themselves, and only themselves.