On June 19, the 15th Chinese Bridge Chinese Proficiency Competition for Secondary School Students and the 21st Chinese Bridge Chinese Proficiency Competition for University Students of Mauritius were held online. The competition was organized by the Confucius Institute at University of Mauritius and sponsored by the Embassy of People’s Republic of China in Mauritius.
‘The Chinese Bridge Chinese Proficiency Competitions are large-scale international contests organized by the Centre for Language Communication and Education in China. The competition provides a platform for Chinese learners from around the world to show their Chinese language skills and knowledge of Chinese culture, to share their learning experience, to examine their learning outcome, and to build a bridge to promote their friendship across the globe. Since its inception in 2002, the competition has become a popular international event among Chinese language learners worldwide, and is known as the Olympic Games for Chinese language learning.’
His Excellency Mr Zhu Liying, Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to the Republic of Mauritius; Prof. Sanjeev Sobhee, Acting Vice Chancellor of the University of Mauritius and Mr Wu Fengmin, Party Secretary at Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, each delivered speeches on the occasion. Mr Naraindra Kistamah and Mrs Fu Mingduan, Mauritian director and Chinese director of the Confucius Institute at University of Mauritius respectively and over 80 people of all walks of life attended the competition.
His Excellency Mr Zhu Liying, Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to the Republic of Mauritius, delivering his speech
Ambassador Zhu Liying spoke highly of the meticulous preparations made by the Confucius Institute at University of Mauritius for the "Chinese Bridge" competition, and expressed his congratulations and gratitude to all the finalists for their active participation. Ambassador Zhu said that China is an ancient civilization with a history of 5,000 years, and is also a dynamic modern country. Mandarin is the key to understanding China and an important link between the Chinese and Mauritian peoples. "Chinese Bridge" is a bridge of friendship and cooperation. Through "Chinese Bridge", one can understand China's past and future, and enter into the daily life of Chinese people. Year 2022 marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between China and Mauritius. In the past half century, the two countries have achieved fruitful results in various fields. In the future, the two countries have great potential for cooperation in trade, finance, medical, high-tech and other fields. Ambassador Zhu encouraged more young students in Mauritius to seize the opportunity to actively learn Mandarin and understand Chinese culture, so as to contribute to the promotion of exchanges and cooperation between China and Mauritius and the deepening of friendship between the two peoples.
Prof. Sanjeev Sobhee, Acting Vice-Chancellor of the University of Mauritius, delivering his speech
In his speech, Professor Sanjeev Sobhee, Acting Vice-Chancellor of the University of Mauritius, expressed his appreciation for the high level of Chinese proficiency achieved by the contestants. He believed that, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Mauritius, it is of great significance for the Confucius Institute at the University of Mauritius to hold the "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for Secondary and University Students of Mauritius. The competition will help further promote the development of Chinese language education in Mauritius. Prof. Sanjeev Sobhee highlighted that the 12 finalists are from diverse cultural backgrounds in Mauritius, which is the true embodiment of the cultural diversity of Mauritius and the "Chinese Bridge". He hoped that more young people in Mauritius would work assiduously to learn Chinese well, and contribute to the promotion of Chinese-Mauritian culture, enduring friendship and cooperation between China and Mauritius.
Professor Wu Fengmin, Party Secretary of Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, delivering his speech
In his speech, Professor Wu Fengmin, Party Secretary of Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, believed that the "Chinese Bridge" has become an important platform for secondary and university students from all over the world to learn Mandarin and understand China. It has built a bridge of friendship between China and young people from all over the world. The "Chinese Bridge" competition held by the Confucius Institute at the University of Mauritius provides local young students with an opportunity to demonstrate their Chinese skills, build a platform for learning and communication, stimulate their enthusiasm and interest in learning Chinese, and enhance their understanding of Chinese and Chinese culture. Zhejiang Sci-Tech University will, as always, support the development of the Confucius Institute, further meet the needs of local Mauritians for Chinese language and Chinese culture, and make more positive efforts for the development of China-Mauritius friendly relations.
Wonderful performances of Ms Laurie Hiu Thian Yuen, the First Prize Winner in the Secondary School category
Great performances by Ms Julia Sookram, the First Prize Winner in the University category
The finals of the 2022 "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for Secondary School and University Students of Mauritius officially started at 9:00 a.m. local time. The first half of the programme was the final of the 15th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for Secondary School Students, and the second half was the final of the 21st "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for University Students.
The theme of the competition for Secondary School students was "Fly High with Chinese",and that for University students was "One World, One Family". The six Secondary School students and six University students who participated in the finals were the winners of the preliminary rounds in April 2022. Under two months of careful guidance of their teachers, each of them delivered a keynote speech and talent show video on June 13th. In the keynote speech, the contestants expressed their views on the respective themes, from different perspectives such as their experience of learning Mandarin, understanding Chinese culture, achieving personal growth, and strengthening China-Mauritius friendship. In the talent show, the contestants show-cased a variety of Chinese talents such as Chinese calligraphy, martial arts, dance, painting, singing and playing instrumental music, to express their understanding and love of Chinese culture.
All the candidates displayed a commendable level of proficiency of Chinese language and culture. It was a difficult task for the judges to deliberate but in the end, after rigorous evaluation, Ms Laurie Hiu Thian Yuen and Ms Julia Sookram were announced First Prize winners for the "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition in the Secondary School and University categories respectively. The two winners will represent Mauritius in the International Finals of the "Chinese Bridge" Competition to be held in China in 2022.
The "Chinese Bridge" competition provides a platform for students to demonstrate their Chinese learning achievements. It assesses the students' language ability and cultural skills and aims at stimulating their enthusiasm for learning Chinese, and promoting two-way exchanges between different cultures. It is hoped that, in the future, more Mauritians will experience the charm of Chinese and the profoundness of Chinese culture through the "Chinese Bridge" competition.
List of winners of 15th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition
Final Rounds for Secondary School Students of Mauritius:
First Prize (1 winner):
Laurie HIU THIAN YUEN
Second Prize (2 winners):
Alexander AH KIOW
Anastasia MOOTOOSAMY
Third Prize (3 winners):
Kelly LI WAN PO
Lisa Grace NG HING CHEUNG
Kate Annelise HOW YAM TSEUNG
List of winners of 21st "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition
Final Rounds for University Students of Mauritius
First Prize (1 winner):
Julia SOOKRAM
Second Prize (2 winners):
Jayde WONG FUNG CHEONG
Jade Laura LAI TONG
Third Prize (3 winners):
Jenna XIANG LAN WONG FUNG CHEONG
Emilie Britney NG YIN HING
Luvlesh Rahul Vickchit RUGHOONAUTH