A total of 276 young speakers from around the world gathered on the shores of Taihu Lake in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, to make their voices heard through China Daily's flagship English speaking competitions.

The 6th Belt and Road Youth English Speaking Competition Global Final and the 29th "21st Century Cup" National English Speaking Competition Grand Final were held in Wuxi from Oct 17 to Monday.

The Belt and Road competition's global final attracted contestants from more than 50 countries and regions, while the "21st Century Cup" event drew finalists from among more than 600,000 young people from 34 competition zones nationwide, all eager to share China's story with the world.

The two champions of the "21st Century Cup" college category and youth category will represent China in the 2025 International Public Speaking Competition in London.

"From the Belt and Road Youth English Speaking Competition to the '21st Century Cup' National English Speaking Competition, young talent with international vision, cross-cultural communication skills and innovative thinking continue to surprise us with wonderful moments of intellectual exchange," said Xu Ying, a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China Jiangsu Provincial Committee and head of the provincial committee's publicity department.

She also acknowledged and praised the cooperation between China Daily and Jiangsu province in promoting youth activities domestically as well as internationally.

Xu made the remarks at the award ceremony for the two competitions on Monday afternoon. The ceremony was also attended by Chen Dawei, director of the International Communication Bureau of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee; Du Xiaogang, Party secretary of Wuxi, and Li Qiufeng, head of the publicity department of the CPC Wuxi committee.

In a speech at the ceremony, Qu Yingpu, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, emphasized the importance of inter-civilizational exchanges and said that by hosting a series of global events, China Daily takes on the responsibility of fostering interactions and exchanges among young people worldwide.

He shared three vivid stories from these events, which he referred to as "China encounters", "brave voices" and "long live friendship". Through these stories, he urged the youths to unleash their potential.

"I hope that every young person here will join hands and forge ahead, courageously becoming the strivers, pioneers and contributors of our era," Qu said.

The competitions covered a wide range of topics, from personal reflections on traditional culture to in-depth insights about the coexistence of different civilizations.

In the Belt and Road Youth English Speaking Competition Global Final, Khaurisa Sarah Makhubele from South Africa emerged as the champion. In the"21st Century Cup" National English Speaking Competition Grand Final, Sun Yiting from Chongqing University was crowned champion in the college category, while Wang Yuting from Nanjing University took the top honor in the youth category.

The award ceremony also included a youth conference dedicated to the Global Civilization Initiative, which offers Chinese wisdom and solutions for global governance from a cultural standpoint.

At the conference, five exceptional young individuals from China, the United States, Pakistan, Russia and Zimbabwe shared their stories and experiences in fostering cultural exchange and integration between China and other nations.

In the face of a complex and dynamic global situation, the events emphasized cross-cultural dialogues among young people from different countries.