Talking his way to the top

Gift of the gab: Ahmad Irfan was clearly the favourite for he not only spoke with conviction but laced his speech with some humour.

HIS creative style and presentation on the common traits of all successful people was what made Ahmad Irfan Jawahar Ali triumph at a public speaking competition. It was their ability to take on risks and their determination to move on that made successful people shine, said the 16-year-old when he spoke on the topic: Traits of a Successful Individual. It also centred on his personal experiences as a teenager that made him the clear and unanimous winner at the competition held at Sunway College.

The Form Four student of SMK Kota Kemuning, Shah Alam, won himself a cash prize of RM600, full tuition fee waiver for any pre-university programme at Sunway College and a trophy.

The Public Speaking Competition 2015 was organised by Sunway College, together with the Oxford and Cambridge Society of Malaysia (Oxbridge Society of Malaysia).

A crowd of 820 fourth and fifth formers, accompanied by their teachers from 23 schools, attended the event.

Oxbridge Society of Malaysia executive committee member Margaret Hall said his well-structured presentation with a good use of humour, which connected him with the audience, placed him ahead of the six other finalists.

Tey Chee Horng of Kuen Cheng High School, Kuala Lumpur, came in second while Ooi Gaik Teng of SMK Aminuddin Baki, Kuala Lumpur, was third.

Winners of the consolation prizes were Nileash Jeganathan and Dhiela Kuruvilla from SMK Taman Desa, Rawang, and Evelynn Trish Lourdes Paul from SMK St Mary, Kuala Lumpur.

The participants were judged on clear pronunciation, clarity of argument and analytical thinking skills.

“A person’s participation in public speaking competitions have been known to be a great self-esteem booster. Standing up on stage and talking to a room or a hall full of people can be a terrifying experience for some,” said Sunway Education Group and Sunway University senior executive director Dr Elizabeth Lee.

“For those of you who would like to make a difference or even change the world, do bear in mind that public speaking is an effective platform for spreading revolutionary ideas, and at the same time get your message through to people, even changing the way people think by aligning your thoughts with theirs.

“Many charismatic leaders have been known to be good orators,” she added.

The judging panel comprised Oxbridge Society of Malaysia president Mark Disney, vice-president for Oxford Emma Davidson and Oxbridge Society of Malaysia honorary secretary Dr Ian Halsall.

The event is the 13th so far, organised by the Sunway Education Group and the Oxford and Cambridge Society of Malaysia.

The yearly event aims to be an agent of change in motivating students to appreciate the linguistic beauty of the English Langu-age both in written and spoken form.