The 14th National Undergraduate (Graduate) Student Russian Language Debate Contest

On Friday, May 17, 2024, the Russian Studies Institute of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies (Director: Professor Pyo Sang-yong) held the finals of the 14th National University (Graduate) Student Russian Debate Competition at the Minerva Complex International Conference Room on the Seoul Campus of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.

This competition, co-hosted by the Russian Studies Institute of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and the Russian Embassy in Korea, has been held annually since 2011 to raise social awareness of Russia and discover talented individuals with excellent Russian language skills. Professor Emeritus Kim Hyun-taek (Department of Russian Language, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies), Ambassador Georgy Zinoviev (Russian Embassy in Korea), Vice President Kim Chun-sik of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, KRBC CEO Park Jong-ho, and professors and students from Russian-related departments across the country attended to encourage the eight finalists.

The 14th Russian Debate Competition, like previous years, aimed to motivate students with a short period of Russian language study, and thus specified the eligibility criteria as ‘university (graduate) students who have lived in a Russian-speaking country for less than 2 years’, and also restricted the participation of graduate students in interpretation and translation.

The organizers chose ‘The Present of Theater: Art that Responds to Contemporary Needs or a Legacy of the Past?’ as the final debate topic in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the birth of the world-renowned Russian director Vsevolod Meyerhold. The finalists expressed their views on the topic presented by the organizers and engaged in a high-level debate through mutual Q&A.

As a result of the evaluation, Sungkyunkwan University student Hwang Se-yoon won the grand prize. All winners, including the grand prize winner, will receive a plaque in the name of the President of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies and the Russian Ambassador to Korea, as well as prize money, at the awards ceremony to be held at the Russian Embassy in Korea in late May 2024.