Korea Foundation hosts Korean language Olympiad in Moscow

The Korea Foundation is hosting the ninth All-Russian Student Olympiad for the Korean Language for two days starting Monday at the Russian State University for the Humanities in Moscow.

The annual competition brings together 30 student representatives selected from 10 universities in Moscow and 20 regional universities in Russian cities, including Ulan-Ude, Vladivostok, Irkutsk, Kazan, Novosibirsk, St. Petersburg and Sakhalin.

Participants will compete in writing, translation and speaking tests.

At the opening ceremony, South Korean Ambassador to Russia Lee Seok-bae delivered congratulatory remarks, emphasizing the importance of people-to-people and cultural exchanges as a foundation of bilateral ties.

He also encouraged participants to contribute to the development of bilateral ties through their study of the Korean language.

This year's grand prize winner will receive a round-trip ticket to Korea provided by the Korea Tourism Organization.

The Korea Foundation said winners in past competitions have continued to build on their achievements in Korean-language studies.

One of last year’s co-winners, Maria Utkina, is currently enrolled in a master’s program at Moscow State University and is studying in South Korea as an exchange student at Jeonbuk National University.

Another co-winner, Maria Vlasova, was selected as a scholarship recipient by the Literature Translation Institute of Korea and is continuing her research and translation work in Seoul.

“Winning the competition gave me confidence in my own abilities,” Vlasova said. “I hope younger students will see this competition as an opportunity to take on new challenges and broaden their potential.”

A Korea Foundation official said the Olympiad serves as an opportunity to motivate Korean-language learners in Russia to pursue more advanced studies and foster exchanges among participants.

“The Korea Foundation will continue to support greater mutual understanding between the two countries through a range of academic and people-to-people exchange programs,” the official said.