After a closely contested five rounds of questions on a range of subjects, Les Beaucamps and Elizabeth College came head-to-head in a tense tie-breaker showdown at the school quiz of the year, this week.
The team from Les Beaucamps will now join the Elizabeth College Junior School, who won the Year 6 heat, on the early- morning flight to Jersey on Tuesday 24 March, for the final challenge at the Jersey Heritage museum.
On the Beaucamps team are Will Curtis, Ethan Cullwick and captain Orla Chilton, who correctly buzzed-in for the crucial tie-breaker question: ‘Under the new UK law, after what time can you start advertising fast food?’
‘We worked together as a group,’ she said. ‘It was good. The lights were very bright so the audience could see you, but you couldn’t see them.’
Les Beaucamps High have been finalists in the Year Eight heat of the challenge for the last three years, and have now won twice.
Every pupil who took part in the local event received a book voucher, and those who came first and second won cash prizes of £450 and £175 for their schools. The Beaucamps team plan to use their winnings to support their library.
‘I’m excited to be going to Jersey,’ said 13-year-old Ethan, ‘we really want to win against them.’
On the lead-up to the event, the team – including back-up members Evie Collis, Freya Fuller and Elvie Lawson – had been practising with science teacher Peter Cullwick, who is also Ethan’s dad.
‘I’m so proud of this year’s contestants and the wider team of reserves who helped push them,’ said Mr Cullwick.
‘They embodied the high expectations we have as a school. Their fantastic team spirit showed throughout – they were even awarded teamwork points after the gentle high fives they gave each other during the final. They’ve all got their own little bits of knowledge they like to show off.
‘There’s a lot of competition between the schools – the students know each other, so there’s some rivalry there. We’re determined to be the first States school to win across the two islands and keep the trophy in Guernsey, following Blanchelande’s win last year.’
Hayley de Putron, trustee of the Ana Leaf Foundation and founder of the de Putron Challenge, congratulated both schools on their successes.
‘As every de Putron Challenge comes around, I continue to be extremely impressed with the level of knowledge and creative thinking shown by our competitors,’ she said.
‘All the teams tried their best, and I hope everyone attending gained some additional knowledge.’
