Football and poetry are often considered worlds apart, but for Martin Kreiner, a football player and Grade 12 student from École Desrochers, using poetry brought his two worlds together.
Earlier this month, his poem The Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Lil Chicken won second place for its category in an international poetry contest for French high school students.
“Fourteen months ago I probably still would have told you that I hated poetry, it was something you were forced to do in school and it wasn’t worth my time,” said Kreiner.
But all that evaporated after his sister talked him into attending a slam poetry contest in Gatineau, Que., near Ottawa, where he won a medal for the most influential poem. The slam poetry contest was part of the Canada Francophone Games.
“Poetry is still a love/hate relationship for me, but this time I think I just punched this one out and it came out really well.”
Written in French, the poem uses characters from the Wizard of Oz to tell a story about the regret and shame of a fatal drinking and driving accident. Replacing the lion, Kreiner introduces a little chicken to represent innocence.
The premise of the poem stems from a fatal drinking and driving accident that killed four football players near Grande Prairie in 2011, explained Kreiner.
Although he didn't know the players himself, he said it’s likely he played against them at some point in time.
The poem started as a school assignment in September before his teacher suggested he submit it to the Assocation Poésie en Liberté, which runs an annual poetry contest sponsored by le Ministère de l’Education nationale in France, among a number of other associations and private partnerships.
“For me there’s no such thing as writing one single poem. I had a few ideas joined together in French and a few other ideas in English and another semi-finished poem in French before I actually wrote this one,” he said.
After nearly forgetting about it, Kreiner said he was contacted two weeks ago and told his poem had been selected by a panel of judges as one of 300 finalists for high school graduates outside of France. About a week later he was contacted again and informed that his poem was selected as the runner up and as a result will be published.
Despite his success, Kreiner said he has no plans to enter the world of poetry and instead will be attending the University of Alberta for industrial design in the fall, with his sights set on possibly becoming an architect down the road.
“I’m not going to go into literature or poetry or something like that, but I think I’m going to find the slam poetry club.”
Paul Clarke
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