XJTLU Students Won Awards at Eastern China Summer Inter-University Chinese Speech Contest

On 16 July, the “Language Connects the World” 2025 Eastern China Summer Inter-University Chinese Speech Contest was held successfully at NYU (New York University) Shanghai. International students from several universities across the region delivered Chinese speeches that reflected their language achievements and intercultural journeys.

Following intense rounds of competition, XJTLU students achieved excellent results. The list of award recipients is as follows:

Second Prize: Mai Anh Ngo(Vietnam);

Third Prize: Andreas Bennord (Indonesia), Katherine Meilan Hanna (USA), Polina Beliakova (Russia);

Merit Prize: Elizaveta Efimova (Russia), Edita (Czech Republic), Veronika Pediuk (Ukraine), Nikita (Russia), Gregory Clarence Sanrow (Indonesia), Alina Tyehuk (Russia), Emma Adelle Booth (Australia), Jennifer Karola Bach (Germany).

Ting Wen, Haixia Wang, Ying Zhao, Yanfang Si, and Fan Yang from Chinese Language Teaching Division, Modern Languages Centre, XJTLU were invited as judges for the competition.

Reflecting on her experience, Mai Anh Ngo shared: “To be honest, I didn’t plan to join the contest. I’ve never been confident in public speaking. But after being encouraged by my teacher and my friends, I decided to give it a go – I actually signed up at the very last minute. Qi Laoshi’s support after class really moved me. His patience and kindness made all the difference.”

Her interest in Chinese began when she downloaded the app Douyin and was drawn to videos of life and landscapes in China. “I started watching more about school life and saw how students could study what they truly loved. That’s when I decided to learn Chinese, hoping to one day come to the place I had grown to love – China.”

Katherine Meilan Hanna shared that learning Chinese is both an academic pursuit and a connection to her heritage. “My major is International Relations and my minor is Chinese Studies. My mum is Chinese and I love the culture and the people.” On her preparation, she said: “Time was tight, so I simplified the content and included personal experiences – it felt more like telling a story than delivering a speech. Now I’m more confident in my Chinese speaking and pronunciation.”

Andreas Bennord was first drawn to Chinese by its tonal complexity. “This was my first-time speaking Chinese in front of an audience. I had five days to write, revise and memorise my script – it was a big task. Fortunately, Li  Laoshi helped me revise my speech and suggested recording it to practise, which really worked.” He added: “Seeing other contestants speak so fluently was truly inspiring – I want to be like them.”

Elizaveta Efimova focused her speech on her admiration for the Chinese writer Lu Xun. “I’ve been interested in literature since secondary school, especially Lu Xun’s critical spirit and concern for society. This contest gave me the chance to share my reflections. I’m very thankful to Wen Laoshi and Li Laoshi for their encouragement.”

Fan Yang, programme Coordinator and instructing teacher of the Chinese Summer School, concluded: “Our students demonstrated remarkable learning ability and expressive skills in such a short preparation time, within one week. Their speeches reflected not just language proficiency, but also cultural understanding and personal confidence. Through their voices, they shared their journeys with Chinese and bridged the gap between their cultures and China.”