A contestant (C) and companions perform traditional Chinese dance at the 21st Chinese Bridge competition held at Ain Shams University in Cairo, Egypt, on May 14, 2022. The 21st Chinese Bridge competition, a Chinese language proficiency contest, concluded on Saturday in Egypt's capital Cairo, as contestants showed their talent and skills in Chinese language and culture. (Photo by Ahmed Gomaa/Xinhua)
CAIRO, May 14 (Xinhua) -- The 21st Chinese Bridge competition, a Chinese language proficiency contest, concluded on Saturday in Egypt's capital Cairo, as contestants showed their talent and skills in Chinese language and culture.
Three out of the 12 finalists, who distinguished themselves from the preliminary rounds of the competition, won grand prizes after their excellent performances at the Ain Shams University in Cairo.
Hosted by the Chinese Embassy in Egypt and Confucius Institute at Ain Shams University, the competition attracted many students from Egyptian universities.
Students first showed their skills in speaking Chinese and their knowledge of Chinese culture, before performing singing, poetry reciting, martial art and other talents.
Aya Ibrahim, a 21-year-old Chinese Language student from Cairo University, won the first prize after she made a great performance highly acclaimed by the audience and judges.
"I always felt shy to join such competitions. This made it a great challenge for me to participate in the Chinese Bridge Contest," Ibrahim told Xinhua after she was announced the winner.
"My love for China, its culture and language, in addition to my resilience, made it easier for me to win," she said, wearing a victorious smile.
Wang Shenggang, minister counselor of education at the Chinese Embassy in Egypt, said the competition is fierce and fully demonstrates the Chinese teaching and students' learning level in Egypt.
"The COVID-19 pandemic has brought challenges to the Chinese teaching and Chinese competition, but the Egyptian government and people from all walks of life have worked together to overcome many difficulties," Wang told Xinhua during the event.
With the deepening cooperation in education between China and Egypt, such as the awarding of academic degrees from both countries, there are now greater opportunities for the learning of Chinese in Egypt, he noted.
Esraa Abd El-Sayed Hassan, director of Confucius Institute at Ain Shams University, told Xinhua that 23 students from all Chinese departments at Egyptian universities joined the contest, and 12 of them made it to the finals.
"This is the most important Chinese language contest because it is a great platform where students of Chinese language from around the world compete to show their language skills," she said. ■
A contestant (L) and companions perform Chinese crosstalk at the 21st Chinese Bridge competition held at Ain Shams University in Cairo, Egypt, on May 14, 2022. The 21st Chinese Bridge competition, a Chinese language proficiency contest, concluded on Saturday in Egypt's capital Cairo, as contestants showed their talent and skills in Chinese language and culture. (Photo by Ahmed Gomaa/Xinhua)
