Under the slogan of the competition “One World, One Family”. May 17, 2019. In the Auditorium of the Colegio Gimnasio Vermont in the Bogotá city, Colombia, the “Chinese Bridge” made and had the presence of several personalities from the political and economic field of Colombia and China, such as the former president of the Republic of Colombia, Ernesto Samper; the Commercial Manager of the People’s Republic of China. Xu We; Cultural Counselor of People’s Republic of China, Zhu Xiaoyan; and, important representatives of companies like ZTE, They saw the competition and the best students of Mandarin.
In 2019, the “Chinese Bridge” Competition had a great importance and relevance in Colombia. The event was held in the Auditorium of the Colegio Gimnasio Vermont, under the slogan: “One World, One Family”, this competition had important Colombian and Chinese politiciens as guest: Former president of Colombia, Ernesto Samper Pizano; Former Ambassador of the Republic of Colombia in the People’s Republic of China, Oscar Rueda García.
Wife of the General Director of the Colombia National Police, Adriana de Atehortúa; Administrative Director House of Representatives, María Carolina Carrillo; Cultural Adviser of the
People’s Republic of China, Dr. Zhu Xiaoyan; Advisor to the Presidential Council for Youth, Sebastián Hernández; Professional of the Presidential Council for youth, Alina Rocha;
Secretary General of the Business Association Colombo-China, Liu Jing; Adviser of Program and Agreements of the Chancellery, Julián Silva; Coordinator of ICETEX, William Barreto; Vice President of the Association
of Friendship Colombo-China, Lina Luna; Vice President of the Association for the Relations of Colombia in China, Diana Andrea Gómez; Rector of the Colegio Gimnasio Vermont, Raquel Lucia Rojas; Vice-rector of the Gimnasio Campestre Reino Británico, Patricia Romero Bohorquez; Vice- rector of the Colegio Británico María Montessori, Diana Galvis; Directors of the Instituto Confucio of the Jorge Tadeo Lozano University, Julian Prieto Barrera and Li Si Qing; Director of the Instituto Confucio of the Andes University, Carolyn Finck Barboza; and, Director of the Instituto Confucio in Medellín, Ma Tao.
This year this competition had two catégories, the school category and university category. The first category had the following participants: Student of the Instituto Confucio of Medellín, Juan Pablo Tobón Zapata; Student of Clase Confucio of the Gimnasio Vermont, Jorge Andrés Barrero Casallas;
Vermont, Isabella González Gil; Student of the Instituto Confucio of Medellín, Juanita Mejía Vargas; Student of the Colegio del Gimnasio Campestre Reino Británico, Jerónimo Delgado Bolaño; Student of the Instituto Confucio of Jorge Tadeo Lozano University, Sofía Alonso Vallejo; Student of the Colegio Británico María Montessori, Carlos Daniel Pérez Ortíz; and, Student of the Colegio Británico María Montessori, Ana Sofia Garrido. The university category had the following participants: Carolina Rodriguez Culma, Student of the Instituto Confucio of Jorge Tadeo Lozano University; Diego Martínez Plata, Instituto Confucio of the Andes University; Alejandra Pabón González, Student of the Instituto Confucio of Medellín; Felipe Ochoa González, Student of the Instituto Confucio of Medellín; Guimel Murcia Rivera, Instituto Confucio of the Andes University; Paul Segura, Student of the
Student of the Instituto Confucio of Jorge Tadeo Lozano University; Alexander Bedoya Arboleda, Student of the Instituto Confucio of Medellin. In this way, when the event took place, a great atmosphere was witnessed and praised by different guests and participants, for example: the Former President of Colombia, Ernesto Samper Pizano, said: “As a promoter of the relations between China and Colombia, I am very proud to know of this scenario where the friendship ties between China and Colombia are strengthened in favor of mutual development.
China is a friendly country that does not seek to impose as another country that we have in the north, true friends help each other, I congratulate everyone for such a wonderful event and for the great opportunities they offer to Colombians.
Moreover, Zhu Xiaoyan, Cultural Adviser of the People’s Republic of China, said: “We have seen that many students every day study more of this Chinese language, they are interested in Chinese culture and also more and more Chinese students come and know this country, generating a path that strengthens cooperation for the education and the culture between both countries.
In the same way, Xu Wei, Trade Manager of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China, said: the presence of each contestant and the audience will all be connected to a bridge of friendship
with China, and we hope to play a good role in our “Chinese bridge” common to both countries and thus promote friendship. Contestants will discover a new stage in China through the Pacific Ocean through the “Chinese Bridge”. Also, María Carolina Carrillo, Administrative Director House of Representatives, expressed some emotional words in front of this competition: “When a person has an honor, we have not only created bonds of friendship. The Chinese embassy is very important, the country China is our true allies, friends, makes 39 years we have this relationship, and more than commercial is a personal relationship that we intend to continue promoting. Thanks to this competition, it is possible that our young Colombians know more about this culture, I also go on the 23rd to know this beautiful country, it has always been my dream since I was a little girl.
Moreover, Zhu Xiaoyan, Cultural Adviser of the People’s Republic of China, said: “We have seen that many students every day study more of this Chinese language, they are interested in Chinese culture and also more and more Chinese students come and know this country, generating a path that strengthens cooperation for the education and theculture between both countries.
On the other hand, the winners of the competition were: Jorge Andrés Barrero, student of the Gimnasio Vermont, in the category of high school students; and, Felipe Ochoa, student Instituto Confucio of Medellin, won the first place in the category of universities, where he stood out for his presentation
of the traditional Chinese poem “Bring the Wine” by Li Bai.
Likewise, the presentation of Diego Martínez Plata, who represents the Instituto Confucio of the Los Andes University was very beautiful, his presentation was a musical interpretation of a traditional Colombian song, singing in Mandarín, and Carolina Rodriguez, competitor of the contest, expressed the importance of this type of competition, she said: “China is one of the countries that is leading the world, and Colombia would be very useful to learn from this country, because, this event is very important as a bridge to improve relations between the two countries.”
Drafted and Published by:
Zhu Xiaoyan
Cultural Counselor of the Embassy of the Peoples’s Republic of China in Colombia.
Jaime Alejandro Restrepo
Assistant Cultural Counselor of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Colombia and General Director of the Commercial and Cultural Agency Brigada SOS.