Thursday 28 March 2024

ESU Malta Public Speaking competition winner in London international finals

Raphael and friends at IPSC16 (1)

Pictured: Raphael Sammut (back row on left) with fellow participants in the English-Speaking Union International Public Speaking Competition last month

Malta’s English-Speaking Union Public Speaking Competition winner, Raphael Sammut, has returned from a week in London, where he participated in the ESU International Public Speaking Competition in May.

The ESU International Public Speaking Competition (IPSC) is the largest and oldest programme of its kind. Each year, it welcomes winners of national public speaking competitions from all over the world to take part in a series of cultural, social, and competitive events in London.
The participants, aged 16-20, have the opportunity to share ideas and make friends with people from all over the world and, of course, compete to be named the best young speaker in the world.
Throughout the week students participated in a range of activities centred around both communication and cultural exchange. They participated in workshops at Shakespeare’s The Globe Theatre, watched a play in London’s West End, and worked with some of the ESU’s most experienced speech and debate mentors at the ESU’s Head Offices in Dartmouth House in central London.
This year’s theme was “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any”, with all 48 competitors having to give a five-minute speech. Eighteen participants were chosen to take part in the semi-finals.
The contenders were then asked to give an impromptu three-minute speech, from which the six finalists were chosen. Vivian Garciacano from Mexico was the overall winner of the competition.
Commenting on his London trip, Raphael said it was an unforgettable experience from which he obtained some valuable life lessons. “I feel that I am now more politically aware about what is happening around the world – I even have new perspectives on life after having met, spoken to and socialised with the other contestants.
“Unfortunately, I was not among the three people who passed to the semi-finals, even though I earned extremely good marks. That being said, I do not feel disappointed – the level was extremely high and I received some constructive criticism. I was actually very happy when Vivian, a competitor from my heat and a good friend of mine, won the competition.”
Raphael paid tribute to Pia Zammit, Director of Education at ESU Malta, who was his mentor and accompanied him to London, for her untiring interest and help in his preparation for the London finals: “Pia emphasised time and again that it was not the competition in itself, neither is it your final ranking, but the entire experience from beginning to end. I can personally vouch that she never said a truer word.”

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