On November 30, 2025, the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in New Zealand successfully held a reception to honor the winners from the Wellington region of the 2025 "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition. Ambassador Wang Xiaolong attended and delivered remarks. Over 50 participants gathered for the event, including the award-winning students and their family members, tutors, judges for the Wellington preliminary rounds, the Director of the Confucius Institute at Victoria University of Wellington, principals of local primary and secondary schools, representatives of Chinese language teachers, and Chinese learners, to jointly celebrate the achievements of the winners in the 2025 "Chinese Bridge" Global Finals.
The three award-winning students are:
Tashi Hogan (柳海智) from Victoria University of Wellington, who won the First Prize in the University Category.
Billie Dufty (杜玲) from Wanganui High School, who won the Third Prize in the Secondary School Category.
Victoria Seymour (维多利亚) from Tauranga Intermediate School, who won the Award of Excellence in the Primary School Category.
Also present at the event were Minister-Counselor Xie Yongjun, Counselor Tang Jun (in charge of educational, scientific, technological, and cultural affairs), and other officials from the Embassy.
Photo by Vicky Lu
In his speech, Ambassador Wang Xiaolong extended warm congratulations to the winners and expressed sincere gratitude to the Confucius Institute, schools, teachers, and parents for their support of Chinese language education. He pointed out that language is not merely a tool for communication but also carries the rich heritage of a nation's history and culture. Learning any language, including Chinese, not only meets communication needs and facilitates bilateral economic and trade cooperation but, more importantly, brings people closer, enhances mutual understanding, and deepens mutual trust. He emphasized that this year marks the beginning of the second decade of the China-New Zealand Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Last week, H.E. Zhao Leji, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China, concluded a successful official friendly visit to New Zealand. This visit continued the positive momentum of high-level exchanges between China and New Zealand, playing a significant role in further consolidating and expanding political consensus, strengthening people-to-people exchanges, and deepening practical cooperation. Not long ago, the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee adopted proposals for formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan. China will continue to advance high-standard opening-up to promote deeper reforms and high-quality development, bringing more stability and certainty to the world economy and providing a broader platform for people from all countries, including New Zealand, to share opportunities and pursue common development. He expressed the hope that New Zealand youth would continue to learn Chinese well to ride the fast train of China's high-quality development and explore a broader future.
Photo by Vicky Lu
The award winners and various representatives shared their reflections. Tashi Hogan recounted the hardships and rewards of self-studying Chinese, thanked the support from the Embassy and Confucius Institute teachers, and stated that participating in the competition in China gave him a deep appreciation for the value of learning Chinese. Billie Dufty vividly described her experience competing in China, saying that through the "Chinese Bridge" she made friends from around the world and personally felt the power of cultural understanding and friendship. Victoria Seymour shared how learning Chinese helped her overcome difficulties and broaden her horizons, and thanked her parents and teachers for their encouragement. Mark Seymour, Victoria's father, expressed his delight at his daughter's broadened perspective through learning Chinese and thanked the school and Confucius Institute for providing valuable opportunities. Mr. Ding Xinguo (丁欣国), Billie Dufty's tutor from Wanganui High School, praised the award-winners for overcoming language barriers with courage and passion and achieving personal growth through cross-cultural communication. Judge representative Dr. Luo Hui (罗辉), Senior Lecturer at Victoria University of Wellington, highly commended the students' language proficiency and cultural literacy, encouraging more students to join the ranks of Chinese learners to promote mutual understanding between the two peoples. Ms. Fiona Mann, Director of the Confucius Institute at Victoria University of Wellington, stated that since its establishment, the Confucius Institute has provided a platform for New Zealand students to learn Chinese and experience Chinese culture through language teaching and cultural activities. Under the guidance of the Embassy, it has organized the Wellington regional preliminary rounds of the "Chinese Bridge" competition for many consecutive years. In the future, the Confucius Institute will continue to work closely with the Embassy and schools to expand Chinese language education programs and contribute to the people-to-people exchanges between China and New Zealand.
Photo by Vicky Lu
During the reception, Ambassador Wang Xiaolong presented congratulatory letters to the three award-winners. Minister-Counselor Xie Yongjun and Counselor Tang Jun presented letters of appreciation to the Confucius Institute at Victoria University of Wellington, the preliminary round judges, and the tutors of the award-winners. Before the event began, attending guests watched a video showcasing the outstanding performances of the three winners at the Global Finals.
The participating principals, teachers, and student representatives expressed feeling inspired. Many students stated they would take the three award-winners as role models, study Chinese diligently, and strive for the opportunity to participate in competitions in China in the future to personally experience China's development achievements. Chinese language teachers expressed their commitment to continuously improving teaching methods and quality, actively recommending high-level students to participate in the "Chinese Bridge" competition, nurturing more outstanding students, and contributing to deepening people-to-people exchanges and promoting China-New Zealand friendship.
Photo by Vicky Lu