The first CGTN French Competition wrapped up on Friday in Beijing. Co-hosted by China Global Television Network, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and TV5MONDE, the competition is the first of its kind on this scale. CGTN French went to France, Canada and China in search of the best French speaker of Chinese heritage.

There are currently 45,000 Chinese students studying in France and 10,000 French students studying in China. Learning the language is one way to understand each other better. But this language competition was more than just a platform for language exchange — it was also a way of promoting cross-cultural knowledge between China and French-speaking nations. Chinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong and French Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Yves Le Drian were at the event, and expressed their excitement for the bright future of these youth and the strong relationship between China and France. 

Launched on March 20, the competition lasted eight months and consisted of a preliminary round, rematch, semi-final and awards ceremony. After beating thousands of contestants, Zhang Bisi, Tan Yaqi, and Lu Guanyu came out on top.

Zhang Bisi who won first place is a French teacher at Zhongnan University of Economics and Law in Wuhan city. She said she studied in France and has been learning the language for more than a decade now. She added that French is a difficult language but also is very elegant due to France's rich history. The youngest of the winners is Lu Guanyu, a philosophy student at Fudan University in Shanghai. He said that learning different languages and culture was part of his upbringing, and his family has always been very supportive of him travelling and studying abroad. While they are obviously fluent in French, their English skills are also impeccable.

French as one of the five main UN languages is widely spoken and the pride of francophone radiates throughout the world. Helene Zemmour, Digital Director of TV5MONDE said that she is genuinely impressed with the skills of Chinese youth. She believes these kinds of cultural exchange events are vital in promoting French culture and language to Asia. She added that China and France have many characteristics in common including the complexity of their languages but also the richness in their history.

CGTN's controller Jiang Heping also attended the event to show his support for the growing international influence of the channel. Jiang said: "The French Competition has become more influential over time, especially in the global sphere. We hope this competition will go beyond the level of a language exchange, and instead become a platform to bridge the gaps between country to country, culture to culture and media to media, to better enhance mutual understanding and to promote mutual respect."