On May 24, the pre-final of the 17th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese language Competition for Secondary School Students in Mexico was held at the Confucius Institute at the University of Guadalajara (UoG). This competition is organized by the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Mexico and hosted by the Confucius Institute at the UoG, which is the second time that the Confucius Institute at the UoG hosted the “Chinese Bridge” Competition for secondary school students since its establishment.
On the day of the competition, Dr. Xu Changqing, Chinese Director of the Confucius Institute at the Autonomous University of Yucatán, and Ms. Alejandra Blanco Carcía, the Foreign Director of the Confucius Institute at the Autonomous University of Chihuahua, were present as special guests, and the heads of the Chinese language programs at the University of Colima and the University of Cienega in the state of Michoacán, as well as students and faculty members of the high schools affiliated with the University of Guadalajara, were present at the competition.
In the course of the competition, nine secondary school students showed their skills in the proposition speech, talent show and cultural knowledge quiz. In the proposition speech session, the contestants focused on the theme of “Improving Chinese language skills, living up to your age”, and talked about their own experiences and feelings of learning Chinese, and their fluent expression of Chinese and sincerity touched the audience and the judges. In the talent show, the contestants performed Chinese classical dance, lion dance, songs and musical instruments. Ximena, a contestant from Confucius Institute of UoG, won the audience's applause with her song “China in the Light”. Her clear voice and wonderful rendition conveyed her love and longing for Chinese culture. Zoe, another contestant from the Confucius Institute at the UoG, performed a classical dance “White Snake”, and her elegant dance posture, exquisite skills and deep understanding of Chinese classical dance won a round of applause. In the cultural knowledge quiz session, the contestants answered questions about Chinese history, culture and society, demonstrating their rich knowledge and adaptability.
After a fierce competition, XIMENA and ZOE SOFIA from the Confucius Institute at the UoG took first and second place. IÑGO ZURITA from the Monterrey Technological University high school and ERIK TADEO from the Confucius Institute in Mexico City tied for third place.
The success of the pre-final of the 17th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese language Competition for Secondary School Students in Mexico held in the Confucius Institute at the UoG has fully demonstrated the influence of the Confucius Institute at the UoG in Chinese language teaching and competitions in Mexico. In addition, the excellent achievements of the two contestants selected by the Confucius Institute at the UoG also reflect the excellent teaching results achieved by the Confucius Institute in the past two years.
