To tell the story of this last day of the festival, so rich in activities and privileged moments, what a huge task! That is why it is perhaps preferable to segment this memorable day into two parts, the finals themselves and the gala evening.

Last day of the Festival, it’s hard not to feel a little bit sad, but also overexcited at the same time. We are at the same time happy and unhappy. Happy and overexcited to have taken up the challenge, to have succeeded in carrying out 15 days of festival in spite of the numerous logistic, technical and even human challenges. But no time for sentimentality. Today is a big day.

On the program, marathon, finals of the soccer tournaments, and above all gala dinner for the prize-giving. And it starts very early with the mini marathon which gathers a hundred of athletes in three categories, men, women, juniors and whose departure is given at six o’clock sharp.

Then, the rest of the activities, regulated like a Swiss clock are in place, first the final of Football Lady which consecrates the Ladies of FC Etondo champions, then in the wake of the ceremony of the final of soccer Male highlight of the show.

Everything begins with the performance of the national anthem of Cameroon, then that of #TheBelingaFoundation, widely applauded by the many public who came to live the last moments of this real popular festival. Nearly five thousand people are present at the stadium for the kick-off of the match between FC Etondo Gentlemen and Red Star Nyengue, kick-off given jointly by the sponsor of the tournament Mireille Gracia Belinga vice chairman of board  of #TheBelingaFoundation and Ms. Ngono Mireille Sonia sub-prefect of the district of Mengong.

No time to breathe, it is at a run that the huge crowd starts to move towards the town hall and the village of the Festival where the first stars are already announced.

Here we are at the gala evening, the highlight of the 15 days of events, the ultimate moment of the celebration of culture. A moment wanted grandiose by the top management of The Belinga Foundation. A moment of choice to make the artists, exhibitors and athletes, who are the heart of this event, understand the esteem that the foundation has for them. But also a unique opportunity to allow the various donors, who do not often have the time to see where their donations go.

As always, things are done like clockwork and latecomers will get their money’s worth. The staff of The Belinga Foundation, which provides security for the Gala Room of the City Hall, is put to the test. Everyone wanted to enter the room or find a place in the courtyard of the town hall set up for this purpose and it was sometimes necessary to use diplomacy and tact to make people understand that only the winners were allowed in the premises.

Fortunately, things quickly returned to normal and calm was restored when Professor Steve Felix Belingachairman of the board of directors  of #TheBelingaFoundation began his speech of thanks after a first musical interlude. In his speech, the chairman of the board of directors expresses his gratitude to the people who have so warmly welcomed the festival, he congratulates the winners without forgetting to encourage the losers to redouble their efforts.

It is twenty o’clock sharp when the handing-over of the prizes to the different winners begins. They do not hide their joy to be celebrated with so much pomp.

This splendor was complemented by the much-acclaimed performances of the Mengan dance group from Mengong, winner of the traditional dance competition, before Richard Amougou and John Duchant, guest stars of the closing night of the festival, set the room ablaze, making even the vice-chairman of the board of directors, Mireille Gracia Belinga, stand up to take a few dance steps.

Once the solemn awards ceremony is over, everyone heads back to the festival village for the closing concerts

It is only in the early morning that the last festival-goers, a little nostalgic, will leave the festival village which now looks like a ghost town with its hangars that we are used to see full and that we can’t help but find strangely empty.

At the end of 15 days of festival, what to retain? The joy of having succeeded in carrying out this Herculean task or the regret that such beautiful moments of exchange and fraternity have passed?

The thousands of articles and local products exposed? the know-how of local craftsmen ? The courage and he efforts of the athletes? the dance steps of some and others? the songs of the winners? the tears of the losers?

or the smile of the populations, privileged witnesses of all this, who have not sulked their pleasure?

One thing is sure, we would like to have more than videos and photos to remember these moments of pure beauty, we would like to be able to take pieces of this festival to be able to put them somewhere on a chest of drawers and say to our children and grandchildren in ten or twenty years “I was there”.

Fortunately we know that in one year we will be back, to live even more emotions, even more beautiful things as thechairman of the board of directors of The Belinga Foundation has so well promised us, so we take our pain in patience and we say to ourselves “one year, just one year to wait before living again these sublime moments”.