On May 24, the Liaoning Final of the 30th “21st Century Cup” National English Speech Competition, hosted by the College of Foreign Studies of Liaoning University (LNU) came to a successful conclusion. Five students from LNU, guided by teachers from the College of Foreign Studies, won two first prizes (advancing to the national finals), two second prizes, and one third prize, achieving new breakthroughs in both the numbers of awardees and the quality of awards for the university.
Founded in 1996, the “21st Century Cup” National English Speech Competition hosted by China Daily is one of the longest national college English speech competitions in China. It has been included in the competition catalogue of the 2023 National Analysis Report on College Students’ Competitions and is recognized as one of the national competitions by the Ministry of Education. At its inception, the competition served as the sole Chinese regional qualifying round for the International Public Speaking Competition (IPSC) founded by the International English-Speaking Union (IESU).
The competition consisted of two main sessions: impromptu speech and live Q&A, comprehensively testing contestants’ English proficiency, logical thinking, and on-the-spot adaptability. Over 100 English elites from more than 30 universities across the Liaoning Province gathered at Liaoning University for fierce competition, jointly presenting a wonderful feast of language and ideas.
Bai Yong (School of Foreign Languages, instructor: Wang Lei) and Tang Yixin (School of Law, instructor: Liu Hongfei) won first prizes. Li Jiayin (College of Foreign Studies, instructor: Wang Jing) and Pang Hanwei (College of Foreign Studies, instructor: Du Juan) won second prizes. Zhao Ruoyu (College of Foreign Studies, instructor: Kuang Xin) won third prize. With their fluent expression, unique insights, and composed stage presence, the five students won high recognition from the judges, becoming the focus of the competition and fully demonstrating the outstanding demeanor of LNU students.
Over the years, Liaoning University adheres to the educational philosophy of promoting teaching, research, learning, and institutional development through competitions, continuously building high-quality practical exchange platforms for students. The achievement of these outstanding results not only vividly demonstrates the teaching outcomes but also provides valuable experience for future teaching reforms and curriculum optimization. This not only highlights the students’ solid language foundation but also showcases their ability to made China’s voice heard on the international stage. It is hoped that the contestants who have advanced to the national finals will continue to maintain high morale, display the youthful demeanor of LNU students on a larger stage, tell Chinese stories in English, and transmit China’s strength with the voice of youth!
