Times of Oman Inter School Quiz Contest concludes with sensational finals

More sports Sunday 30/April/2017 21:02 PM
By: Times News Service
Times of Oman Inter School Quiz Contest concludes with sensational finals

Muscat: “It was a riveting final. I think the rise in numbers in terms of participation reflects the sheer enthusiasm for a knowledge event like this. The quiz has grown into a huge brand,” said Giri “Pickbrain” Balasubramaniam as the sensational Times of Oman Inter School Quiz Contest (TOOISQC) came to a close at the City Amphitheatre on Saturday night. For the first time, Times of Oman had outsourced the organising of the quiz to Eventful/Doc LLC, Oman’s leading event management company.
As nearly 5,000 spectators witnessed the brilliance of sharp young minds in action at the finals of the TOOISQC, Indian School Ghubra teams steamrolled to victory in both junior and senior categories.
Indian School Al Ghubra’s junior team Pranshu Dasgupta and Sai Madhav Kota and senior team Anirudh Govil and Yashasva Swapank put up an outstanding performance to win the Essa bin Mohammed Al Zedjali Rolling Trophy.
Speaking of the junior winners,Giri “Pickbrain” said, “They were well prepared and the way they cracked the ‘audio round’ sealed the quiz in their favour. There was a stamp of authority that they really showed. They look well poised for a couple more titles if they play it well in the years to come. Hands down they were a superb team at the finals.”
About senior winners he said, “They worked out some tough questions and worked out an early lead to win the trophy for their school.”
Pickbrain also added, “The senior quiz was remarkable simply because till the final round I think everyone had a chance and the maturity the teams showed saying 'we don’t want to go for a bonus question' was amazing. I thoroughly appreciated the way they played it.”
Indian School Muscat’s Faizan Najeeb and David Jijo, answered some tricky questions to take the first runners-up place in the junior quiz. Indian School Sohar’s Sree Sankar Pradeep and Armaan Shaikh did well to take the second runners-up in the junior quiz.
In the senior category, Indian School Wadi Kabir’s Chethan Sethu, Rahul Rathnakar gave a tough fight to finish second. Indian School Darsait’s Harikrishnan Lal Pillai and Sneha Ann Reji put up an impressive performance and finished third.
The quizmaster was impressed by the quality of the answers at the TOOISQC.
He said, “We had made the junior quiz little tougher than the past and they really lived up to it. We wanted to raise the bar otherwise there is no fun in it.”
Saying that he was “thrilled with the quiz” Pickbrain said, “There is a marked improvement in the quality especially in the junior section which is heartening. The seniors have started learning how to play the game. Senior quiz looked like an‘open quiz’ which is really nice. They have seasoned themselves. It is also nice to see teams from the junior making their mark in the senior quiz. That is also a testimony to how the game is evolving.”
He said he was impressed with new schools making it to the finals.
“The real take away of the quiz was the Philippines School, American British Academy, Al Ghad Al Mushriq making a mark. It’s no longer just a few schools it’s the entire gamut. If you really take the list between the junior and senior just about every school made it to the final so it is truly fantastic,” he said.
Pickbrain said, “It is nice to see the quiz is being done in a professional way by a professional management company like (Eventful/Doc LLC). It is reflective of a growth of a property. I believe it is here to stay and it is really nice to see the way quiz is growing and we hope it may reach 5,000 teams in the prelims one day.
Dr Sathish Nambiar, managing director of Eventful /DOC LLC said, “We are delighted to have been given the opportunity to host this prestigious event. It was heartening to see so many people turn out to watch this knowledge game. The event once again proved that Times of Oman school quiz is always a thriller. We thank Pickbrain and the Greycap teams for the brilliant questions and research they brought to Oman. I would also like to thank Times of Oman for their support. I thank all the participating schools and schools that provided their auditorium as a centre.”
He also added, “I wholeheartedly thank all the sponsors without whose support the show wouldn’t have been possible.”
At the end of the eventful evening, Mohamed Issa Al Zedjali, chairman of Muscat Media Group and editor-in-chief of Times of Oman, distributed the awards to the winners.
The junior quiz final consisted of rounds such as ‘Rites of Passage’, ‘Something to Answer for’, ‘Staying on’, ‘The World we live in’.
The senior quiz incorporated rounds such as ‘League of Legends’, ‘Need for Strategy’, ‘Game of Crowns’ among others.
Giri was very impressed by the audience’s response to the TOOISQC.
“It was great turnout of the crowd and this proves their passion for quizzing. The dance was a surprise element and everyone enjoyed that.”
He added, “One needs to applaud Times of Oman for sustaining such a long drawn-out event.”
The 12 teams in the junior section, who competed for the coveted TOOISQC trophy, were are Indian School Al Ghubra (Pranshu Dasgupta, Sai Madhav Kota), Indian School Muscat (Faizan Najeeb, David Jijo), Pakistan School Muscat (Muhammad Abdullah, Abdullah Jahangir), Indian School Sohar (Sree Sankar Pradeep, Armaan Shaikh), Indian School Wadi Kabir (Muhammed Ameen, Adam Raffi), Indian School Darsait (Alok Sachin, Aditya C.M.), Al Ghad Al Mushriq (Rabie Haider, Sulaiman Al Busaidy), Indian School Ibri (Aditya Chakraborty, Jevon Jaden Joseph), Indian School Seeb (Prajwal R.K, A Mithun Bharath), Bangladesh School Muscat (Inaam Bashar, Ghufran Ahmed), Indian School Ibra (Justin Augustine, Justine Kuriachan) and Indian School Muladha (Ashlin Joy and Roshan Rajesh Kumar).
The 12 teams in the senior section, who battled for the trophy, were Indian School Muscat (Krithivaas Vijay, Aliva Das), Indian School Wadi Kabir (Chethan Sethu, Rahul Rathnakar), Indian School Al Ghubra (Anirudh Govil, Yashasva Swapank), Philippine School (Crimson John S. Wong, Crimson Paul S. Wong), Indian School Darsait (Harikrishnan Lal Pillai, Sneha Ann Reji), Indian School Salalah (Darin Peter Carvalho, MihirRavat), Indian School Seeb (Adeel Ahsan, Junaid Shaikh), Indian School Sohar (Manas Vegi, Abhinav Suresh), Indian School Sur (Prasanth Thomas, Jayadeep Babu), American British Academy (Nikhil Narayanan, AfnanAzi Akbar), Sri Lankan School Muscat (Tariq Nazeem, Amar Yasir), Pakistan School Muscat (Mehreen Mansoor, Maryam Sarah).
The 24 teams who made it to the finals were from among the 504 teams (from 22 schools) who contested in what the quizmaster Giri ‘Pickbrain’ Balasubramaniam described as the ‘high standard mega prelims’ at the Indian School Muscat on Thursday.
Breaking all previous records, over 1,900 student teams from both categories had participated in the prelims of the ‘knowledge movement’ created by the Times of Oman.
Times of Oman Inter School Quiz Contest (TOOISQC) was presented by Minara and powered by Omantel. The sponsors were Pocari Sweat, L&T Oman, Lulu, Hotace, National Plastic Factory L.L.C., MHI, Al Jiran, Malabar Gold & Diamonds, Schoolmate, Sparx, Kellogg's, Al Omaniya Financial Services, Office Supplies, Pilot, Daawat, Muscat Pharmacy, Kings United Oman, Sapil, Abounabil Oman, Mobicell, Al Rawabi, UAE Exchange, Chiko, Oman Oasis. Talentzwas Technical partner and Muscat Printing Press was print partner.