Three ASU students won the first and second place respectively in the 14th "Chinese Bridge" Southwest Division Qualifiers

Three ASU students won the first and second place respectively in the 14th "Chinese Bridge" Southwest Division Qualifiers April 4, 2015, the 14th...

On April 4, 2015, the 14th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for Foreign College Students in the United States Southwest Division Qualifiers was held at the University of Arizona. Three students from Arizona State University passed five levels and defeated six, and won the championship and runner-up in multiple categories with their super strength. Among them, Ryan McCloskey won the top spot in the Chinese senior group and will represent the Southwest Division of the United States in the "Chinese Bridge" semi-finals in China. Anthony Costantini won the championship in the intermediate category, and Jacob Black won the runner-up in the intermediate category. Chen Weiheng, Consul of the Education Section of the Chinese Consulate General in Los Angeles, attended and served as a judge for the competition.

This competition brings together players from various universities in Arizona, Southern California, Texas and Hawaii to compete for a ticket to the China Finals. The day's preliminaries set up three levels for the contestants, namely keynote speeches, question answering and talent performances. The contestants talked about their relationship with China in Chinese, demonstrated their multi-faceted understanding of China with accurate answers, and expressed their love for Chinese culture with songs, dances, poetry recitations, martial arts and other talent performances.

Ryan McCloskey, who won the championship of the senior category, immediately impressed all the judges and the audience as soon as he took the stage. His bright eyes, elegant posture, and fluent and clear Chinese all left a deep impression on everyone. During the talent show, he amazed the audience by playing and singing "The Ordinary Road". The junior from Tempe is currently majoring in computer science and minoring in Chinese at Arizona State University. In his speech titled "My Chinese Dream", he told the story of his life in China. He came to Beijing as his father's job was transferred. He initially lived in the suburbs of Shunyi and attended high school at an international school. There, he had almost no opportunity to come into contact with any Chinese culture and Chinese language, and he had no affection for or understanding of China. Then since he moved to downtown Beijing, he began to learn Chinese, eat Chinese food, make Chinese friends, and learn about Chinese popular culture, etiquette, thoughts, and unique concepts. From then on, I gradually began to understand that China has a culture that is completely different from that of the United States, and I accepted and loved this culture as the locals did. After returning to the United States, he missed Beijing deeply, and his "Chinese Dream" always lingered in his mind. He said affectionately: "People never realize how precious what they have is until they go to the city or leave. I miss Beijing and want to go back to Beijing. I will continue to work hard in Chinese and computer science in school. I sincerely look forward to returning to China one day. I want to start a business in China and design applications that everyone likes. "As for the competition itself, Ryan said it was a great opportunity for him to realize his dream: "I feel like just standing in the competition, it seems that my Chinese dream is already within reach. Now that I think back to the competition scene at that time, the longing for Beijing in my heart becomes even stronger. ”

Anthony Costantini, who won the intermediate category championship, is currently a sophomore studying East Asian history. He has never been to China, so he is full of deep curiosity about China. After studying Chinese for two years, experiencing China, "not only wanting to visit the Great Wall and the Terracotta Warriors, but also wanting to live an "authentic" Chinese life" became his Chinese dream. He talked about the authentic Chinese life he wanted to live in from various aspects such as food, music, literature and philosophy. He said: "As we all know, China has a very rich food culture. From north to south, from west to east, there is nothing you can't imagine, and there is nothing you can't eat. Every region, even every small town, has its own unique taste. So my Chinese dream is first of all: to travel all over China, eat all over China, and experience "China on the Bite of the Tongue" for myself! An authentic Chinese life cannot be separated from the company of music. Music has no borders. In the sound of music, you can enjoy the joys, sorrows, joys and emotions of local people. Chinese literature and philosophy have a long history, from "The Analects of Confucius" and "Tao Te Ching" to "Three Kingdoms" and "Dream of Red Mansions". If you have the opportunity to go to China, you can. I will go out to eat with Chinese friends, listen to music, and read Chinese books. I will use my mouth, eyes, and ears to experience ancient and modern China." Looking back on the competition, he believes that the teachers at the Confucius Institute at Arizona State University gave him great help and sufficient encouragement, giving him the confidence to challenge and re-examine himself. He said: "For me a year ago, participating in the Chinese Bridge Competition was just a fantasy. But with the help and guidance of my teachers, I was able to memorize my Chinese speeches, answer cultural questions related to China, and sing Chinese songs. It was their help that allowed me to strengthen my Chinese dream and continue to strive for it."

Jacob won the second prize in the intermediate group Black shared with everyone the process of the formation of his Chinese dream. An experience in Singapore made him feel the subtleties of Chinese for the first time, thus stimulating his desire for the Chinese language. Two years ago, he went to Singapore to teach. In the first class, since the course content was relatively complex, he wanted to use a paragraph to encourage students to study hard and not give up easily. But no matter how hard he racked his brains, exhausted his tongue, and used all the Chinese vocabulary he knew at the time, the students in the audience were still confused. At this time, a student suddenly stood up and told him: Teacher, what do you want to say is "Everything is difficult at the beginning." Jacob suddenly realized that what he just said could be summarized concisely and accurately in five words. While studying philosophy at Arizona State University, he also realized that his life was full of "everything is difficult at the beginning", such as learning Chinese. After being deeply shocked by the breadth and depth of the Chinese language, he began to desire a deeper understanding of Chinese language and culture. As he said: "I know that the learning process is long and arduous, but nothing is difficult in the world, as long as there is a willful person. I hope that one day I can go to China and learn Chinese and Chinese culture to realize my dream of better understanding the people of this country and their dreams." After learning that he had won the second prize, Jacob was filled with emotion: "I was studying Chinese hard and preparing for the Chinese Bridge competition, while also actively preparing for my wedding. Life is composed of countless learning episodes, full of various aspects. Everyone will look back on the difficulties they experienced, but when we look back on how we spent that time, we will always benefit a lot from it. I believe that my experience in the Chinese Bridge competition will be very helpful for me to learn Chinese in the future and strive to understand the inner world of the Chinese people. "

Arizona State University has achieved great results in this year's "Chinese Bridge" American Southwest Division Qualifiers, which greatly inspired the enthusiasm and determination of students in the Phoenix area to learn Chinese. This summer, Ryan McCloskey will also travel to China as a representative to participate in the next round of rematches. The Confucius Institute at Arizona State University sincerely wishes him a smooth promotion and strives to the top, so that he can realize his Chinese dream as soon as possible!