On December 17th, the final round of the 2nd“Yunshan Cup”International Remote Interpreting Contest was successfully concluded. The contest was initiated by Guangdong University of Foreign Studies and organized by the Guangdong Translation and Interpretation Base for International Communication. A total of 216 participants from Chinese and foreign universities competed at a high level in consecutive and simultaneous interpreting on a remote interpreting platform. Under the theme of “Cultural exchanges and mutual learning, a better future of the world”, competitors narrated China’s stories in 14 foreign languages, aiming to enhance the global understanding of China’s perspectives and solutions and foster cultural exchanges and mutual understanding between China and the outside world.
Emphasizing the Exchange of Human Civilizations, the Contest Highlighted Youth's Global Role
Divided into 14 foreign language categories including English, French, German, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, Hindi, Malay, Lao, Burmese and Khmer, the contest attracted over 4,000 participants from prestigious Chinese and international schools such as the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey in the US, University of Leeds in the UK, Moscow State University in Russia, Toulouse Institute of Political Studies in France, Seoul National University in South Korea, Hanoi University in Vietnam, and Bangkok University in Thailand. Domestically, participants were from Peking University, Beijing Foreign Studies University, Shanghai International Studies University, and Guangdong University of Foreign Studies. After preliminary and semifinal rounds, a total of 216 interpreters from around the globe advanced to the final round.
Consecutive Interpreting Final
Professor Liu Haichun, member of the Party Committee and Vice President of Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, stated that through interpreting, young people can spread excellent Chinese culture to five continents while playing a unique role as cultural ambassadors. They serve as vital bridges for disseminating Chinese culture overseas and facilitating exchange and mutual understanding between civilizations.
Live Chat with the Champion of Russian Consecutive Interpreting
The Contest Followed Language Industry Trends and Advanced Innovative Talent Development in International Communication
Xing Yutang, Vice President of the CICG Academy of Translation and Interpretation (ATI) and Vice Secretary-General of Translators Association of China (TAC), pointed out that interpreters bear significant responsibilities in global outreach and spreading Chinese culture worldwide. Excellent interpreters facilitate cross-cultural communication through language.
For this contest, six senior experts in international communication from the United Nations Staff Recreation Council Chinese Book Club, China Central Television, and overseas Confucius Institutes were invited as keynote speakers. Professor Li Zhengren, former Chief of Interpretation Service, United Nations Office at Geneva, served as the thematic report expert to evaluate participants’ remote interpreting abilities. Professor Liu Jianda, Vice President of Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, noted that as an international remote interpreting platform, this competition not only represented digital innovation in translation education but also aligned with cutting-edge language service industry trends. It helped bridge the gap between universities and the industry. The contest also functioned as an assessment of multilingual interpreting education quality at Chinese and foreign institutions, contributing to translation teaching. Collectively, these efforts further international cultural exchange and boost China’s global communication capabilities.
Several foreign participants noted that the contest facilitated exchanges and dialogues among youth from different nations, allowing mutual learning and a deeper understanding of China. Ms. Jenny Fearnside-Bitsios, President of the International Association of Conference Interpreters (AIIC), emphasized the role of translation as a bridge for the exchange of human civilizations amid today’s multicultural integration. AIIC congratulated the event and expressed interest in deeper cooperation with Chinese institutions to cultivate more world-class international interpreters. This would enhance provision of high-quality multilingual interpreting services globally.
Ms. Jenny Fearnside-Bitsios, President of the International Association of Conference Interpreters (AIIC)
The finals of the 2nd "Yunshan Cup" International Remote Interpreting Contest came to an end
On December 17, the finals of the 2nd "Yunshan Cup" International Remote Interpreting Competition came to a successful conclusion. The competition was initiated by Guangdong University of Foreign Studies and undertaken by Guangdong International Communication and Translation Base. With the theme of "Mutual Learning among Civilizations, a Better World", 216 contestants from universities at home and abroad competed in consecutive interpretation and simultaneous interpretation on the remote interpretation platform, telling Chinese stories in 14 foreign languages, so that the world can better understand China's ideas and solutions, and promote exchanges between Chinese and foreign civilizations and people-to-people bonds.
Focus on mutual learning between human civilizations and show the responsibility of youth
The competition has set up a total of 14 foreign Chinese Chinese languages in English, French, German, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, Indian, Malaysian, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia. More than 4,000 contestants from well-known universities at home and abroad such as Guangdong University of Foreign Studies have registered. After the preliminary and semi-final selections, a total of 216 players from all over the world successfully advanced to the finals.
Professor Liu Haichun, member of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee and Vice President of Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, proposed that this competition allows young people from all over the world to spread the excellent culture of the Chinese nation to all continents and seas through translation, so that they can play a unique and important role as a bridge and become messengers for the overseas dissemination of Chinese culture and the exchange and mutual learning of human civilization.
Cultivating innovative international communication talents
Xing Yutang, Vice President of the Translation Institute of CIPG and Deputy Secretary-General of the Translators Association of China, pointed out that interpreters bear a great responsibility in foreign exchanges and international communication, and excellent interpreters build bridges of communication in terms of language and culture.
Xing Yutang, Vice President of the Translation Institute of CIPG and Deputy Secretary-General of the Translators Association of China, delivered a speech
The competition invited six senior experts in the field of international communication, including the United Nations China Book Club, as keynote speakers, and Professor Li Zhengren, former head of the interpretation department of the Conference Management Division of the United Nations Office at Geneva, served as the keynote report expert to examine the remote interpretation ability of the contestants.
Professor Liu Jianda, Vice President of Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, mentioned that the competition is not only a digital innovation in translation education, but also a way to connect with the cutting-edge trends of the language service industry out of the ivory tower, and an evaluation of the quality of multilingual interpreting education at home and abroad, which feeds back into translation teaching. Jointly promote international cultural exchanges and jointly promote the improvement of China's international communication capacity.
To tell Chinese stories well, we need not only Chinese discourse and Chinese perspectives, but also folk and personal foreign language storytellers with Chinese Xi experience to express themselves from individual perspectives and emotional dimensions. A number of foreign contestants mentioned that the competition promoted exchanges and dialogues among young people from all over the world, learned from each other, and Xi for everyone to better understand China. Jenny Fernside, President of the Association of International Conference Interpreters (AIIC), mentioned that in today's multicultural world, translation is a bridge for mutual learning between human civilizations, and high-level translators can break the language barrier and help the international community build consensus.
Text丨Reporter Chen Liangtu丨Photo courtesy of the event