Contestants' works

Section: Primary School Group

Name: Gao Xing

Age: 11

School: Beijing Dongjiao Minxiang Primary School

"Jordan, open! Chicago with the lead! 5.2 seconds left, Michael Jordan, running on fumes, with 45 points!"

My dear audience, you just witnessed the greatest moment in basketball history－Jordan's last shot! It was against the Utah Jazz and marked his sixth NBA championship and finals MVP.

As a young but adept basketball player, I love the sport for two main reasons.

First, basketball helps us make real friends. So many students nowadays don't socialize with real friends. Instead, they socialize with their endless homework assignments or so-called smartphones.

By playing basketball, you get to play with real people and really compete. And naturally, you make some actual friends!

More importantly, basketball makes you strong both physically and mentally because it's a difficult game to play. To be an elite player, you need to master so many moves.

You need to be strong to finish all of these complex moves. At the same time, your mind must be sharp to follow the movements of the other nine players around you on the court. You need to anticipate every possible movement of these nine players, so that you can help your team beat the opponent. You see, basketball is a healthy way to sharpen both your body and your brain.

Perhaps the most precious thing in the greatest players of all time, including Jordan and the late Kobe Bryant, is their love for basketball. By playing a sport that they truly love, they became better teammates and better people. Let's all join this big crowd of basketball lovers and enjoy the beauty of this sport.

Section: Junior Middle School Group

Name: Feng Ran

Age: 13

School: Hangzhou Jianlan Middle School

Dear Andrew,

If you want to visit a city in China, Hangzhou is a perfect choice. There's a well-known saying in China about this city: "Up there is paradise, and down here are Suzhou and Hangzhou." I was born and raised in the city and reckon it is one of the most beautiful and hospitable cities in the world.

It's at one end of the longest canal in the world and is famous for its beautiful scenery and cultural relics. The Grand Canal and West Lake are world heritage sites that have witnessed Hangzhou's glorious history. Many poems and legends speak of the lake's beauty and tell romantic stories about it.

Hangzhou is also proud of its prosperous economy. It's home to the internet company Alibaba and can now truly be called an international city. As a Hangzhou local, I believe the city's humanity is its greatest asset. It's open and full of warmth and love. In Hangzhou, the most common jobs are respected and our people encourage hard work. So it was no surprise when the government recently honored a young deliveryman for his outstanding work. Taxi drivers here are so patient that they even stop for wandering cats.

These are some of the things that make Hangzhou special, and I'm sure it's why the Asian Games will be held here in 2022. I love Hangzhou not only because of its beauty but also because of its people. I'm sure you'll love it, too.

Your friend,

Saipan

Oct 20, 2020

Section: Senior Middle School Group

Name: Wang Rouzhi

Age: 15

School: Experimental High School Attached to Beijing Normal University

I remember reading a piece of news during the semifinal of the 2018-19 ISU Short Track Speed Skating World Cup, when South Korean skater Choi Ji-Hyun pushed China's Li Xuan. Choi's push caused Li to lose control and fall off the course. The judge noticed the push and disqualified Cui, instead sending Li to the final. But Li was affected by the push and, despite advancing, only got sixth place.

The news led people to feel nationalistic. Driven by utilitarianism news nowadays tends to weaken the spirit of sporting events by instead inciting belligerence and anger among its consumers. As a reporter, I believe our biggest challenges are improving the quality of news and increasing the spirit of sport. I can do that by spreading accurate information and promoting cohesion between nations instead of invoking conflicts.

News quality should be the top priority. It encompasses the timeliness, authenticity, comprehensiveness and depth of news information. In news gathering and writing, I should observe the facts comprehensively and report them objectively. The facts should be vivid and concrete, with language that is clear and easy to understand. I will pay attention to some ordinary people's natural views on the Asian Games to organically combine it in my writing with official public opinion.

The Asian Games must also shoulder its responsibility of showcasing the spirit of sports, which includes perseverance and national cohesion. China's media has been strengthening the value and role of the gold medal, while weakening the essence of the spirit of sports. Our country's multimedia only focuses on the strong points of Chinese athletes and pays little attention to lesser known events, especially competitions without Chinese athletes. I want to get rid of the "gold medal complex" and show the spirit of sports in my writing.

I want to guide the audience's rational understanding of the gold medal by paying more attention to the spirit of hard work and perseverance. I will applaud those who won silver medals, bronze medals and even those who didn't win medals. Those who have paid for their dreams, whether they succeed or fail, are heroes.

To sum everything up, it can be very challenging to report interesting and meaningful news.

We must have a high level of self-learning and cultivation, and have a full understanding of the competitions and athletes. We have to know why and how something happens to illustrate the true spirit of the games. I will try my best to overcome these obstacles.

Section: University Group

Name: Shao Yuchao

Age: 20

School: Hangzhou Normal University

As a student studying translation, I can hardly remember how many times I have prayed, if only my readers could understand the original language! The more I translate, the more powerless I feel when coming across untranslatable phrases and actions. It can be such a difficult, or even impossible task, to find the perfect representation of what people are really saying with their hearts.

My frustration lasted only until my trip to Brisbane, where I helped an old Chinese-speaking lady find her missing grandson. I was moved by the boy throwing himself into the grandmother's arms, after she had told me how much she loved him. But I was soon shocked to learn that the grandson was born in Australia and spoke only English.

That moment, in the foreign land of a remote country, I had an epiphany. I could translate the grandmother's words, but I could never translate her love for her grandson.

Her love was untranslatable, because I stood before the boy as just a kind stranger instead of a caring family bound by blood. I could act to be, or approximate, but could never be there.

But did I have to?

Did I have to go over to the boy and translate for him "your grandmother said she loves you very much", so that he could understand?

I don't think so. Love is untranslatable, but it doesn't need to be translated because it's part of our shared humanity. It's felt by our own hearts and it's as real as the chilly wind outside. Humanity is a universal language that doesn't need translation.

In the coming Asian Games, there's a pile of translation to be done. But the core of the Games is always untranslatable: the passion of the athletes rushing for the finish line, the devotion of the volunteers to the Games, the perseverance of the medical workers who stand by as the Games go on. These beautiful fragments of humanity that pass from heart to heart are untranslatable.

But they are the pillars of the Asian Games, which in itself is above all Games of humanity.

This is why the Asian Games is of special importance to today's world. We need to unite humanity for a greener, healthier, safer, and more peaceful and prosperous world. And as we move forward to a globalized future, there will only be more global opportunities and challenges.

And by that time, our togetherness should prevail over our differences, our humanity should prevail over our short-sightedness, and heart-to-heart dialogues should prevail over tightly barred doors. Let's make the Asian Games a monument of heart-to-heart humanity, a full-score answer to untranslatability and a commitment to our shared future.