Fiction

Laps of Honour

Pravasan Pillay

Pravasan Pillay is a South African writer who now lives in Sweden. His short story collection, Chatsworth, was published in 2018, and was translated into Swedish in 2020 - it was also published in the UK in 2026. His latest book, Curry and Bread, was published in 2025.

I run the 400m in what is a record time for my school. I’m asked to run a lap of honour to mark the occasion, which turns out to be the fastest lap of honour in my school’s history. To celebrate I run a second lap of honour, which, to my surprise, is the fastest second lap of honour ever at my school. This requires an unprecedented third lap of honour, which I run so quickly that I break the 400m record I had set earlier. I’m asked to run a lap of honour to mark the occasion.