Egyptian student Mennatallah Ahmed Mahdy, who recited a Sezai Karakoç poem, won the poetry competition of the 10th International Turkish Language Olympiad on Wednesday night.
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The winner of the poetry competition of the 10th Int’l Turkish Language Olympiad was Egyptian student Mennatallah Ahmed Mahdy. (Photo: Today's Zaman) |
The poetry final of the 10th International Turkish Language Olympiad, which brings together hundreds of foreign students each year from Turkish schools established around the world, took place at the Ankara Arena sports hall on Wednesday night and thousands of people, including senior officials, politicians and high-profile guests from the world of the media and arts were in attendance.
Nine international students recited Turkish poems in the contest. As well as the poetry performances, some of the students sang songs and two groups of students played folk dances in the final leg of the 10th International Turkish Olympiad poetry competition.
Turkmenistan's Ruslan Annamammedov, who won the most prestigious medal in the Turkish Language Olympiad singing competition on Tuesday night, sang the song “Gülüm Benim” (My Rose), with which he won the medal, at the poetry competition.
The winner of the night was Mahdy from Egypt, who recited the Turkish poem “Sürgün Ülkenin Başkenti” (Capital of the Country of Exile), and second place went to Aygün Elyasova from Turkmenistan. She recited a poem by Nazım Hikmet titled “Güneşi İçenlerin Türküsü” (Song of the Sun Drinkers). Muhammed Tahiri from Macedonia received third place with one of the poems by Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen titled “Uzayan Bir Şafak Sonrası” (After an Prolonged Dawn).
Ankara Mayor Melih Gökçek announced the names of the top three students and also presented tablet PCs to them at the ceremony. Food, Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Minister Mehdi Eker delivered the bronze, silver and gold medals to the students.
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| Fethullah Gulen |
Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yıldız, who also attended the event, told Today's Zaman that the event carries great importance in terms of promoting Turkish culture to the world. Yıldız thanked all people who had contributed.
Abdulsamet from Nigeria interviewed members of the jury at the ceremony, which the spectators showed great interest in. To a question by one of the Nigerian students, Professor Nurullah Genç, a poet, responded: “There is a saying: Build a new path for humanity, walk a path opened, or get out of the way. At a time when millions of people in the world step aside, I want to send my greetings to those people who started out on a holy walk and built a path of love, compassion and brotherhood in dozens of countries around the world. I want to say this to humanity: If you can't build new paths and if you also don't want to get out of the way, you should walk on the nice path that has been opened, too.”
Responding to Abdulsamet's questions, poet İbrahim Sadri said that although he has been reciting poems for about 25 years, he is still trying to learn how to recite a poem in his native language, but the students recite poems with great success even though they have learned Turkish in a short time. “The success of these students can only result from great effort, dedication and patience. I kiss the hands of the teachers who have contributed so much to this cause. God bless them all,” Sadri noted.
Former Turkish Language Association (TDK) President Şükrü Haluk Akalın said the Turkish schools established around the world not only contribute to the expansion of the Turkish language but also to the introduction of Turkish culture and literature to the world.
A total of 1,500 foreign students from 135 countries came to Turkey for the Turkish Language Olympiad, which is organized by the International Turkish Education Association (TÜRKÇEDER). This year's competition, which will run from May 30-June 14, will predominantly be held in Ankara and İstanbul, but there will also be activities in 41 other Turkish cities. The theme of this year's Olympiad is “İnsanlık için el ele” (Hand-in-hand for humanity).
Meanwhile, 75 students from various parts of the world fascinated locals in Çorum province on Wednesday night. Although there was heavy rain in the city, thousands of people attended the festival at Dr. Turhan Kılıçcıoğlu Stadium. Locals showed great interest in students who sang and recited well-known Turkish songs and Turkish poems and played folk dances at the festival. Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Çorum deputy Salim Uslu was also among the attendees.
70 students from 18 countries staged performances at the Hatay festival on Wednesday night. About 80,000 locals attended the festival, which was held in İskenderun, a coastal city in the province of Hatay. The festival was organized by the Industrialists and Businessmen's Association of the İskenderun Gulf (KİSİAD) on the coast. Justice Minister Sadullah Ergin, who spoke at the festival, said these students coming from various parts of the world as part of the Turkish Olympiad teach humanity a valuable lesson.
Published on Today's Zaman, 07 June 2012, Thursday
