22nd ‘Chinese Bridge’ Chinese Proficiency Competition for College Students Successfully Held in UCD

 

The Irish Final of the 22nd "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for College Students was held at the UCD Confucius Institute on April 14, 2023. Hosted by the Chinese Embassy in Ireland (Education Section) and organized by the UCD Confucius Institute, the event attracted distinguished guests including Chinese Ambassador to Ireland HE HE Xiangdong, Vice President for Global Engagement at UCD Prof. Dolores O'Riordan, Head of Education Affairs of the Chinese Embassy to Ireland Ms. ZHU Xikun, and others.

This year's competition featured 19 contestants from universities across Ireland, who gave speeches on the theme of "One World, One Family". Eight contestants advanced to the final round, where they performed traditional Chinese drumming, martial arts, calligraphy, tea ceremony, Tianjin Kuaibaner, and Chinese songs.

Tsz Ching Peng from UCD won the championship, with Thirsa McNamara from UCC and Hernan Perez McKay from UCD awarded the second prize, and Anna Daly from TU Dublin, Joan Akaehomen from the University of Limerick, and Daire McCann from NUI Maynooth winning the third prize. Alyssa Gray from NUI Galway and Joseph Clarke from TCD received the Most Promising Prize.

In her speech, Vice President Dolores O'Riordan congratulated the winners and emphasized the importance of Chinese language learning as a bridge between different cultures. She expressed gratitude for the support of the Chinese Embassy in Ireland (Education Section) and praised the staff at the UCD Confucius Institute for their work in organizing the event.

During his speech, Ambassador HE HE Xiangdong acknowledged the difficulty of learning Chinese and praised the contestants for their perseverance and persistence. He presented three books on Chinese history, geography, and culture to the finalists and encouraged them to continue their learning journey.