Tournament scrapbook - World Schools Debating Championships

WSDC 2008
12/3/08 9:52 AM
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Team Qatar sets world record at international debate contest
Publish Date: Sunday,21 September, 2008, at 01:33 AM Doha Time
Just and the team members talking to the media yesterday
By Ourouba Hussein
THE first Qatar National Debate team set a new world record for a
team making its debut at the World Schools Championship by coming
19th at the international event that concluded in Washington DC,
recently.
Senior instructor and programme manager Alex Just told reporters
that the five-student Qatari team won four of their eight debates, and
finished 19th in the 2008 World Schools Debating Championships
(WSDC), ahead of teams from established debating countries like
Kuwait, India, Germany, Japan and the USA.
“Team Qatar won preliminary debates against high school debaters
from Botswana, Japan, Zimbabwe and Montenegro, which is a new
world record for a team making its debut at the tournament,” he
explained.
Qatari member of the group Talal Burshaid speaking about the
competitions, said the team had four prepared debates and four
extempore ones. ‘Delivering emergency aid in any humanitarian crisis’
was the first prepared topic which the Qatar team won against the
Botswana team.
The Qatar team debated against team England in the second
prepared topic, which was about scientific research.
“It was a close debate. England won the 2008 WSDC, but the
members of the winning team said one of their hardest debates was
the one they ran against Qatar,” he said.
Just pointed out that team England had five-and-a-half years of
debating experience, while the Qatar team had started practicing
some 10 months ago.
He said that the Qatari team competed in two debates against each
of A, B, C and D teams, and recorded their best performances against
the A teams. “That made the judges say that the Qatar team has
done very well.”
The five students said they have learnt a lot from the trip and
debates.
Burshaid said he learned not to underestimate or overestimate rival
teams, but to just give his best.
Fatima Hijran spoke about gaining more knowledge related to
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