Wellington College at Yale University, December 2012

Students at Wellington College will undoubtedly be aiming high in their university choices, none more so than the twelve students who represented the College in the World Scholar’s Cup ‘Tournament of Champions’ at Yale University earlier in December. For three days the twelve students made their homes at the world-famous university, the alma mater of Presidents George and George W. Bush. Indeed they lunched together, alongside the current undergraduates, in the Yale dining hall under the watchful gaze of George Bush Snr in his imposing portrait.

All of the many events that go into the World Scholar’s Cup were held in various locations around Yale. The competition was intense and it was, according to all the Wellington participants, the toughest challenge any of them had faced in their experience of the World Scholar’s Cup. Yet the team still came away with several medals and commendations to add to their enviable haul at the Global Round last summer in Bangkok. Katie Cook came third in the Individual Junior Debating competition, in addition to being commended for her creative writing. Minho Yoon followed his Art award in Bangkok with one at Yale, while Miho Azumi carried off the prize for the Scavenger Hunt. We attributed this to her prowess in Geography! The Junior Debating Team of Katie Cook, Konstantin Chakos and Ada Chen won all three of their debating competitions and just missed out on the medals. Katie was given a prominent part in the Showcase Debate, where she gave the decisive speech in winning the argument for the team defending the current US role in world diplomacy. President Bush, if not both of them, would have been impressed.

After the three days of competition the party spent a couple of days sightseeing in New York, before flying back over the North Pole to Tianjin. It was, as all of the students said, the trip of a lifetime, an experience they would never forget. It will be interesting to see how many of them end up studying at Yale or other Ivy League schools in the US, but the message of the competition was clear: they have the ability.