Kaifeng, December 18, 2016 - the twenty-second China Daily “21st Century • Coca-Cola Cup” national English speaking competition - provincial final (Henan) was held successfully in Zhengzhou University of Aeronautics. More than ten authority experts and scholars were invited to attend the competition and served as judges, including He Jinshe, vice president of Zhengzhou University of Aeronautics, Gao Jihai, dean of Foreign Language College of Henan University, Zhang Jinsheng, director of Foundation Department of PLA University of Foreign Language. Through nearly two months selection, 38 outstanding players from more than 40 colleges and universities in Henan competed on the theme “Man and Technology: The Brave New World”. After fierce competitions, Li Xin, a student from our college, stood out and won the champion of the final in Henan.

It is reported that this competition lasted for five hours and consisted of three parts: speech on the given topic, impromptu speech and answering questions from the judges. The judges assessed the players and gave the final scores according to player’s English ability and other aspects such as manner and posture during the speech. With solid language skills, all the players presented an excellent feast of English to the audience. Among them, our player Li Xin won general applause for her fluent English expression and brilliant performance. In the impromptu speech session, she gave vivid and detailed answers when asked “what should college students do in summer holiday” and “whether universities should cancel summer holiday for full year study”, expressing her unique insights, clear thinking and authentic use of the English language. In an interview, Li Xin said: “Rome is not build in one day, so as the practice of English listening and speaking. This game gave me a chance and a platform to exercise and show myself. In fact, everyone should have the courage to stand here and give it a try.”

At the end of the competition, Professor Gao Jihai, dean of Foreign Language College of Henan University, made professional and detailed comments on the performance of the players and extended his sincere congratulations. Subsequently, Prof. He Jinshe, vice president of Zhengzhou University of Aeronautics, spoke highly of the outstanding performance of the players and encouraged Chinese young people to learn the world and spread Chinese culture in English.

In addition, Li Xin, the winner of the competition, would participate in the national semi-final competition on behalf of Henan province, together with the second and third place winners - Sun Xiaonan from Henan Normal University and Wang Xiaoou from Zhengzhou University.

Written by Han Zi

Translated by Tian Xiang