I hold in my hand a circular concerning the Poland-wide “English Olympics,” a competition they hold every year to reward exceptionally good schoolchildren. As far as I know, these Olympics are held in all subjects, not just English. It’s not a terribly exciting document. It gives the closing dates for various stages – school, regional and nationwide – and directs the reader to http://www.ifa.amu.edu.pl/fa/oja for more information. But there’s a nice touch at the end of the circular, which is a message from the Ministry of Education, reading:

Uwaga! Ministerstwo Edukacji Narodowej zastrzegło sobie prawo do rozwiązania umowy na realizację olimpiad przedmiotowych w przypadku braku środków na sfinansowanie realizacji zadania w roku 2010.

Loosely translated this means: “Go ahead kids. Knock yourselves out. Maybe we’ll give you a prize and then again maybe we won’t. There’s a crisis on.”