Feature: Argentine student wins last chance to compete in int'l Chinese Bridge contest

Eduardo Macchi, an Argentine student, had one chance left to win a ticket to the international 2016 Chinese Bridge contest, to be held in Beijing in July, and he cinched it.

Macchi beat out other Argentinian students of Chinese at a national competition held Friday at the Confucius Institute of the University of Buenos Aires (ICUBA).

One day later, his excitement did not recede, as he is now one step closer to the goal of bridging the two cultures as a translator.

"I'm 30 years old, it was my last chance to participate in Chinese Bridge," said Macchi, who has learned Chinese for the past six years, including one year spent in China.

Each year, students from universities and institutes where Chinese is taught vie for a chance to compete in the grand finale and win an opportunity to study Chinese in China.

The competition tests language proficiency and general knowledge about China's culture and arts, through an oral exam and artistic performance.

This year, the theme of the contest was "Dreams that illuminate the future."

Macchi made a special effort to win this year's national competition, and his take on the topic impressed the panel of judges.

"This competition was really very interesting," he said. "My oral presentation was about a personal dream of mine, which is universal: the search for peace."

He also succeeded in impressing the judges by playing the Chinese zither, or Guzheng.

"I taught myself to play the traditional Chinese instrument and I tried to do my best," he said.

"I give Chinese classes to Argentinians and Spanish classes to Chinese who come to Argentina. Those are my main jobs, always something related to the Chinese language and culture," said Macchi, who was born and raised in the capital Buenos Aires.

"I'm finishing my studies to be a Chinese-Spanish translator, ... and winning is a great honor," said Macchi, adding "it's going to be an unforgettable experience. I hope to do the best I can and represent Argentina in China well."

Chinese Bridge is open to students of Chinese as a second language between the ages of 18 and 30, and is organized by local Confucius Institutes, with the help of the Chinese embassy.

The national competition in Argentina points to a growing interest in the Asian giant, and how it has inspired young Argentinians to learn more about China's language and cultural heritage.

Pablo Cullinan, the coordinator of language and culture studies at the ICUBA, told Xinhua "the event has turned into a tradition since it was first held in 2005."

"As in past years, what we like to see is that Chinese language students from around the country are increasingly more passionate and eager to learn," Cullinan said.

That effort is all the more notable since "the Chinese language is very complicated for Argentinians (and) it requires effort on the part of the students. Our job is to ensure they persevere," said Cullinan.

In the past decade or so, the program "'Chinese language as a Bridge' has succeeded in stimulating the students: participating, seeing students from all over the country, and others from other countries, makes you persevere," he added.

There are 500 Confucius Institutes in 134 countries and regions around the globe, according to the Confucius Institute Headquarters (Hanban), which is affiliated with the Chinese Ministry of Education.

The institutes are named after the renowned Chinese philosopher and teacher. Confucius taught his followers that the ideal society can be built through education and governance guided by ethics and morals. Endit