A team from The University of Nottingham has beaten students from Harvard at the 2011 International Varsity Debate organised by Central China Television.
Aired on the state TV channel to a potential audience of more than a billion people, the Nottingham team of Ricky Jeavons, Kenrick Davis and Peter McSweeney held their nerve to come out as winners in the debate asking: “When getting married, should your spouse love you more than you love them?”
Peter, an MA student in English/Chinese Interpretation and Translation, explained: “Although the debate subject may seem odd to us, it is a question often debated in China.
“Knowing how many people could be watching made the early exchanges extremely nerve-wracking, but we soon relaxed and enjoyed the experience. The competition was fantastic and gave us the opportunity to meet fellow Chinese language learners and native speakers from all over the world.”
For his performance during the debate, Peter was presented with the Best Debater title for the second year running. The University’s School of Contemporary Chinese Studies (SCCS) was also celebrating after its students — Ricky and Kenrick — followed in the footsteps of two of the School’s PhD students, who won second prize last November at the ninth International Varsity Debate.
Professor Shujie Yao, SCCS Head of School and director of Nottingham Confucius Institute, congratulated the students, adding: “The continuous success of SCCS students in the International Varsity Debates signifies the remarkable achievements of the School and demonstrates that SCCS can produce the best students in Chinese Studies.”
Sixteen teams took part in the four-day competition, in two groups. Eight teams competed as native Mandarin speakers and eight competed as non-native Mandarin speakers. Each team competed in one debate, with a best debater selected from each event.
The eight non-native Mandarin speaking teams included those from Harvard University, Princeton University, The University of Nottingham, The University of Sheffield, Moscow State University, The University of Melbourne, Tel Aviv University and The University of Heidelberg.