驻英大使“汉语桥”比赛选手招待会讲话

文章作者 100test 发表时间 2011:10:03 23:34:49
来源 100Test.Com百考试题网


中国驻英国大使刘晓明在为英国参加历届“汉语桥”中文比赛的选手举行的招待会上的讲话
  2011年9月16日,中国驻英国大使馆
  Remarks by H.E. Ambassador Liu Xiaoming at the Reception for the British contestants of the "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition
  The Chinese Embassy, 16 September 2011

  同学们,
  老师们,
  朋友们:
  Teachers and students,
  Ladies and Gentlemen,
  今晚,我非常高兴在中国大使馆为英国参加历届“汉语桥”中文比赛的选手及其老师、亲友举行专场招待会。我谨对大家的到来表示热烈的欢迎。
  A very warm welcome to the Chinese Embassy. It’s a great pleasure for me to give this reception tonight for the ’Chinese Bridge’ contestants and your teachers, families and friends.
  本来,我今晚的讲话应该全部用中文,但考虑到许多出席招待会的选手亲友们还不会讲中文,我也充分理解学习中文还需要一个过程,所以今天我还是讲英文。同时鼓励选手亲友们也加入到学习中文的行列中来。我不期待你们也争金夺银,而是希望你们通过学习中文,更多地理解和支持你们的亲人参赛,更好地参与我们的中文活动。
  Tonight would be a good occasion for me to speak in Mandarin. Yet I fully understand that some of you do not speak Mandarin or have only just started learning. So I will continue my speech in English. I want to encourage the families and friends of UK contestants to join the ranks of Mandarin learners. You may not win prizes in competitions like your loved ones. But by learning Mandarin, you would give even stronger support to your dear ones in their competition. And you would appreciate more our Mandarin events.
  我在今年初就提议举办今天的招待会,使馆教育处也筹措了一段时间,但一直是“万事俱备、只欠东风”。终于,我们迎来了期待已久的这股强劲“东风”。上个月,在中国举行的第10届“汉语桥”世界大学生中文比赛决赛阶段中,英国赛区选拔推荐的董鹏德、大米、田原皓和罗斌四位同学分别荣获一个一等奖,两个二等奖和一个三等奖,另外,董鹏德被授予“汉语语言使者”称号,田原皓获最佳网络人气奖。如果说去年亚非学院蒋思哲同学摘得第九届世界大学生“汉语桥”大赛桂冠是“脱颖而出”、“一枝独秀”的话,今年,你们则是“群体性崛起”和“集体爆发”,创下了“英国队”参赛以来最好成绩。祝贺你们!所以,今天招待会第一层意义是“庆功宴”。
  I came up with the idea of hosting this reception earlier this year. The Education Section of the Embassy has been working on it for some time. I’m glad that today, as the competitions have drawn to a close, we are finally able to celebrate Chinese and British success. The annual ’Chinese Bridge’ competition was created by Hanban in China. Since its start, over 800,000 students around the world have taken part in preliminary stages of the competition. This is a wonderful contribution to building cross-cultural understanding between young people from all around the globe. Let me now turn to the British success in this contest. Last month, the finals of the 10th ’Chinese Bridge’ Chinese Proficiency Competition for Foreign College Students were held in China. I am delighted that the British team became a big winner in the competitions. I warmly congratulate the four members of the team, Peter Dolby, James Bilbow, Alexander Odahara and Adon Lawley. Respectively they won a first prize, two second prizes and a third prize. In addition, Peter Dolby was awarded the title of ’Chinese Language Envoy’, and Alexander Odahara was named the ’most popular contestant’ by Chinese internet users. A few months ago I gave a farewell message to this British team as they set off for China. I said that last year the British team had set a high challenge. This was Stewart Johnson’s top prize in the 9th competition in 2010. This year’s British team have certainly risen to the challenge. Theirs was the best performance Britain has ever achieved in the ’Chinese Bridge’ contest. Their success this year is a superb achievement. Their win provides a shining light on the excellence of Mandarin teaching in Britain. As such, perhaps I may suggest the prizes belong to all Mandarin learners and teachers in this country. The success and prizes are a symbol of the progress in boosting the teaching of Mandarin in Britain. So my sincere congratulations to all British students and teachers of Mandarin! Today’s event is first and foremost to celebrate your winning these prizes.
    
  第二层意义是“壮行宴”。近年,不仅是英国大学生连奏凯歌,中小学生在“汉语桥”比赛中同样可圈可点,参加比赛人数越来越多,成绩越来越好。在去年的比赛中,来自惠灵顿中学的冉皓立同学获得了最佳演讲奖。今年的世界中学生“汉语桥”中文比赛开赛在即,听说即将代表英国参赛的代表队---卡尔迪语法学校正在全力准备,我衷心预祝你们发挥出色,再创佳绩。
  Second, we are here to wish you more victories! In addition to university students winning prizes, Mandarin students in primary and secondary schools are also doing extraordinarily well in the ’Chinese Bridge’ competition. We have seen more of them join this contest. And equally striking is that their performances are getting stronger year by year. Last year, Harry Randall from Wellington College won a prize for the best individual speech. This year’s competition for secondary school students is just around the corner. I am told that the team 0selected to represent Britain in 2011, the Calday Grammar School, is preparing with great vigour. I wish these school contestants every success!
  第三是“感谢宴”。中国人向来是尊师重教,学生取得优良成绩,自然要归功于老师的悉心辅导。所以,我要感谢孔子学院和孔子课堂的院长、老师们,更要感谢长期在英国各大、中、小学从事中文教育、默默耕耘的老师们,你们辛苦了!我高兴地得知,你们的队伍正在壮大,你们的学生越来越多,你们的事业不断发展。目前在英国,“汉语热”持续升温,近10万英国人正在学习中文;超过500所英国中小学开设了汉语课程,一些学校甚至将中文作为必修课;54所大学开设了中文课程,特别值得一提的是,曾经培养了众多优秀中文人才的杜伦大学在停招若干年以后,决定于今年10月恢复招收中文专业学生;孔子学院和孔子课堂经过6年的发展,数量已分别增加到17所和57间,在欧洲名列首位。就在前天,我还参加了在英国议会举行的英国孔子学院年会,勉励孔子学院和孔子课堂加强可持续发展,不断提高教学质量,更深入地介绍中国文化。
  Third, our gathering tonight is a thank-you reception. We Chinese have an age-old tradition of respecting teachers and valuing education. So the Chinese custom is for part of the credit for students’ success to go to their teachers. In this spirit, let me thank the leaders and faculty of the Confucius Institutes and Confucius Classrooms. Also, I must thank all those Mandarin teachers who have worked so hard and so long with their students in universities, secondary and primary schools up and down the country. Across Britain, I am much encouraged to note the growth of Mandarin teaching. It is clear Mandarin learning is gaining wider popularity in Britain. The evidence is that there are more Mandarin teachers and learners every year. This enthusiasm for learning about China means that around 100,000 British people are learning Mandarin. As I speak, over 500 secondary and primary schools teach Mandarin. Some schools have even put Mandarin on their curriculum as a compulsory course. Meanwhile, Mandarin courses are taking a more prominent position in higher education. Mandarin is now available in 54 UK universities. I am particularly pleased to note the progress at Durham University. Over many years this university has trained so many excellent Mandarin learners. After a break of some years it is excellent news Durham has decided to enrol Mandarin ’major’ students again in October this year. After 6 years of expansion, the numbers of Confucius Institutes and Confucius Classrooms have risen to 17 and 57 respectively. This growth is putting Britain way ahead of any other European country in Mandarin teaching. The day before yesterday, I attended the UK Confucius Institute Annual Conference held in the House of Parliament. In my address, I encouraged the Confucius Institutes and Confucius Classrooms in the UK to pursue these themes:
  · I believe they should strengthen the sustainability of the foundations established.
  · In turn this will provide a platform to provide higher quality courses and so expose every more people to the Chinese culture and language.
  当然,我也要感谢英国参赛选手的亲友,特别是家长。正是由于你们的支持和鼓励,英国同学们不仅在汉语学习不不断取得进步,而且在各项比赛中摘金夺银。《金融时报》最近报道,根据对英国富时100指数公司所作调查,随着英国努力扩大对华出口,许多英国大企业都希望雇用有在华经历、了解中国(当然包括懂得中文)的人才担任公司高管,甚至进入公司董事会。我想,这应当是一个给你们信心、令你们鼓舞的好消息,你们的付出、孩子的努力必将得到回报。
  As we celebrate this expansion and success, let us give thought to the families and friends of students. My deep thanks go to the families and friends of the young students, especially those of you with us today. I’m sure your support and encouragement to Mandarin learning is a key factor in the progress and success we are witnessing among the students. I believe that the study of Mandarin may also advance the careers of British students. The evidence is in a recent survey reported by the The Financial Times. This survey found that many FTSE 100 companies seek to hire senior executives and board members with a China background and knowledge of Chinese language and culture. This is a clear, encouraging signal that should give you confidence in your choice of Mandarin study. Your hard work will be rewarded one day.
  最后,今晚的招待会也是“欢迎宴”。在英国学习汉语只是第一步,要真正了解中国,我认为还是要到中国去留学。因为,当代中国是如此充满活力和富于变化,只有实地到中国观察和体会,才能真切地感受到中国的快速、全面发展及其深刻影响,才能深刻地理解中国为什么要走一条适合中国国情的发展道路,同时也是一条和平发展道路。今晚,蒋思哲和董鹏德同学没能前来参加招待会,这是因为他们已经开始自己的在华留学生活。我既为他们今晚的缺席感到遗憾,更为他们新的在华留学生活感到高兴。而且,像他们这样的留学机会现在越来越多。今年中国政府出台了《留学中国计划》,确立了今后十年赴华留学发展的战略目标,即到2020年,使中国成为亚洲最大的留学目的地国家,每年外国留学人员达到50万人。为此,中国将加大资金投入,创新培养模式,提高教育质量,完善服务管理,特别是要增加奖学金名额。我们欢迎越来越多的英国年轻人到中国留学,了解中国的悠久文化,体验当代中国的无穷魅力。
  Last but not least, our gathering tonight is a welcome reception. Learning Mandarin in Britain is merely the first step. To see China as it is, I believe a study experience in China is a must. China today is so vibrant and it changes so fast. Without first hand observation, it’s difficult to feel China’s development and what this means to world. Without visiting China it’s even more difficult to understand why China has taken a path that fits in well with its realities, which is a path of peaceful development. Tonight, I regret that Peter Dolby and Stewart Johnson are not with us at the reception. Yet I am pleased that both of them have begun to study in China. I’m sure we will hear more such stories, because more opportunities will be offered to foreign students. To facilitate this process, this year, the Chinese government unveiled its Study in China Program. This is a strategy that aims to encourage more international students to be educated in China over the next ten years. By 2020, China will host 500,000 international students every year. That’s more than any other country in Asia. To reach this strategic objective, China will take these steps:
  · provide more finance,
  · build new training facilities,
  · raise education standards
  · and strengthen support services.
  In addition, more scholarships will be available to students from the rest of the world. We welcome more and more British young people to China to study. We want them to explore Chinese cultural heritage and experience China’s immense appeal today.
  今年3月,当我同威尔士亲王一起出席威尔士兰德福瑞公学孔子课堂揭牌仪式的时候,威尔士亲王曾令人意外地用汉语对我说:“威尔士欢迎你!”在这里,我也对所有的汉语学习和爱好者说一句:“中国欢迎你!”
  Last March, I joined His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales at the official opening of the Confucius Classroom at Llandovery College in Wales. I was taken by surprise when His Royal Highness said to me in Mandarin, "威尔士欢迎你!" ("Wales welcomes you!") Likewise, I have a message for all those in Britain studying Mandarin and with an interest in China. My message is "中国欢迎你!" ("China welcomes you!")
  谢谢。
  Thank you.

  


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