外研社辩论赛blog

The 10th “FLTRP Cup” National English Debating Competition opens today at the FLTRP International Conference Center on the southern outskirt of Beijing. The scale of this year’s competition exceeds all previous ones since its inauguration in 1997, with a total of 132 teams from universities across China and over 500 participants including debaters, team tutors and independent adjudicators. As the most prestigious English debating event in China, FLTRP Cup celebrates its 10th anniversary this year.

　　
An Opening Ceremony was held this morning in the Lecture Hall of the Conference Center. Invited guests present at the ceremony include Mr. Steven Johnson, Director of Debate from the University of Alaska Anchorage, Mr. Loke Wing Fatt, president of the Society for Associated Inter-tertiary Debaters based in Singapore, and Miss Cheron Calder, Development Director of the International Debate Education Association. FLTRP’s Deputy Editor-in-chief Ms Zhang Siying and manager of the General Publishing Division Mr. Li Jiazhen also attended the ceremony.
Guo Xiaoyu (Communication University of China) and Yang Yuzhi (Tongji University), two award-winning debaters from last year’s competition, joined hand to host the opening ceremony. Their glamorous presence and humorous presentation not only add delight to the occasion but also best showcase the confidence and competence residing in our nation’s youth, which is exactly what this competition aims to discover and unveil.

　
On behalf of FLTRP, Ms Zhang Siying extended hearty welcome to debaters and tutors and sincere appreciation to independent adjudicators who have been invited to ensure the fairness of the competition. While encouraging teams to strive for the best, Ms. Zhang also stressed the importance of intellectual participation in itself, and hoped that students will take this opportunity to forge friendships with their opponents.
Mr. Steven Johnson, who will serve as chief adjudicator in the 10th Competition, spoke on the importance of debate. Learning to debate, he pointed out, helps to improve fluency, logical thinking, and public speaking skills; more importantly, debating in the English language opens up a window for Chinese students to understand how people in the west perceive the world. Speaking for the adjudicators, Mr. Johnson promised to all participants that he will spare no effort to ensure an educational, enjoyable and fair competition.

Representatives from tutors and past debaters also spoke at the ceremony. Prof. Cao Li from Tsinghua University praised the debaters as “verbal athletes” and the competition as “exciting and rewarding”. Chen Qianrong, second runner-up in the 9th FLTRP Cup, shared her experience at the 12th All Asian Intervarsity Debating Championship held in Malaysia last May, in which she won the title of Best Novice Debater.
Following the Opening Ceremony was a training session given by Mr. Johnson entitled “American Parliamentary Debating―From Philosophy to Practice”.
Trainings for debaters and adjudicators will continue tomorrow, and as a rehearsal, a mock round of debate involving all participating debaters will follow to prepare students for the on-coming battles. Finally, a special question session will wrap up the preparation stage before the round robin starts.