By Honorary Reporter Claudya Agatha Mande from Indonesia

The Korean Consulate in Bali, Indonesia, on May 25 hosted the finals of the 2024 Lomba Pidato Bahasa Korea (Korean Language Speech Contest) at Bendega Restaurant Bali in the city of Denpasar on the tourist island. 

Registration and the preliminary and semifinal rounds were held from April 16-30. Contestants had to send videos for assessment by the judges, with 12 of the 15 qualifying applicants advancing to the finals.

The competition's committee prepared two topics that contestants could choose one from. The first was what they want to do on a visit to Korea citing locations and reasons, and the second was what kind of country Korea is from a foreign perspective using examples like Korean food, culture and society.

Starting in the morning, the competition was lively because of activities and information on studying in Korea, tourist attractions, food and drink, games and Hanbok (traditional clothes) that visitors could try on.  

Korean Consul General Jeon Jong-yoon opened the event with a welcoming speech.

Consul General of Bali, Indonesia, Jeon Jong-yoon on May 25 gives the opening speech at the 2024 Lomba Pidato Bahasa Korea (Korean Language Speech Contest at Bendega Restaurant Bali in the city of Denpasar on the tourist island. (Claudya Agatha Mande)

"I was surprised twice when I came to Bali because Indonesians, especially Balinese, are very fond of the Korean Wave such as Korean dramas and K-pop and it's very easy to meet Balinese who speak good Korean," he said while giving the speech in Korean. 

The competition was divided into two sessions. Six finalists gave speeches on the first topic and the remaining six did the same with the second, with each contestant getting five minutes of speech time.

The five judges were teachers Jeong Mun-kyo and Kim Soon-hwan from Bali Seum Hangul School, teachers Lee Seung-hee and Lee Chang-ho from Bali Korean School, and Korean Association in Bali executive Kim Seong-hee.

Four winners were crowned: Raisya Syahma Aquila was first, Oktavianus Ama Kii second, I Gusti Ayu Agung Siddhamahandari Surya Hadi Sugriwa third and Gusti Ayu Komang Putri Kencana Pebi Anitasari fourth.

The winners and judges of the contest pose for a group photo. (Korean Consulate in Bali's Instagram account).

The winners received gift certificates and Samsung product sets and visitors and others got souvenirs. 

The consulate organized this event in collaboration with Balinese TV media.

These are scenes from the contest including the souvenirs given to the visitors. (Claudya Agatha Mande)

msjeon22@korea.kr

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.