U.S. Finalists Selected for 2010 International German Olympics in Hamburg
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- (© Deniz Yalcin)
The 13 best U.S. candidates met at the Goethe-Institut Chicago to compete in the National Preliminary Round USA. The two winners will participate in the International German Olympics Finals. This world-wide competition is to take place in July 2010 in Hamburg, Germany.
In the International German Olympics, students aged 16-20 compete in the areas of German language competence and knowledge about Germany. The winners will receive a grant for a three-week language course in Berlin, Germany, during the summer of 2011.
German teachers throughout the U.S. were allowed to nominate two candidates to participate in the national preliminary round (maximum of two candidates per school). The competition includes three different learning levels: Basic (1-2 years of language instruction), Independent (3-4 years) and Proficient (more than 4 years).
German Consul General Onno Hückmann presented the awards to the U.S. national contest finalists. In his remarks, he emphasized the importance of the German language in today’s global world. It is spoken by about 200 million people, either as a first or second language. 18 per cent of all books published on the planet are in German. German is still the second-most commonly used scientific language world-wide. „English is a must, German a plus“, he said.
