On Saturday 7th March 2026, the Finals Day of the 21st Japanese Speech Contest for University Students was held at the Bush House Auditorium, King’s College London.

This year, we received applications from seventy-six students from eighteen UK universities. On the Finals Day, twenty-four finalists from ten universities joined us from across the country to give speeches and presentations in Japanese.

The finalists discussed a range of contemporary issues and shared their indispensable perspectives through their speeches and presentations – those who missed the event can view the video on our YouTube channel:

[Youtube Link- coming soon!]

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Opening Ceremony

We began the day with an opening ceremony, led by Mr Kazuya Takahashi, Deputy Director of the Japan Foundation, London. Welcoming speeches were heard from Mr Shuji Maeda, Minister for Public Diplomacy and Media, Embassy of Japan in the UK, and Dr Ana Maria de Medeiros, Director of the King’s Language Centre at King’s College London, who welcomed the finalists and expressed appreciation for their courageous effort in giving speeches and presentations in Japanese.

Individual Presentation Category

Five finalists in the Individual Presentation category spoke about their chosen topics while using PowerPoint slides. This category was for learners of Japanese at the post-beginner level.

First place was awarded to Stella Shi, 4th year at The University of Warwick, who shared her powerful message in her presentation titled Tiny Beauty, Mighty Strength. This explored the idea of beauty through small moments of self-care and the courage these bring in times of vulnerability.

Second place went to Yui Shing Kwok, 2nd year student at Keele University, for his humorous yet insightful presentation My teachers are Japanese video creators, where he shared the unique aspects of learning Japanese from video streamers!

The three runners-up in this category also gave some brilliant presentations: Ria Kosaka, the University of Leeds (The Mystery of Momotaro); Jessie Baker, Newcastle University (What is ‘Alternative’?); and Leah Foster, the University of Cambridge (The Problem of Overconsumption in Japanese Otaku Culture).

Speech Category

During the Speech Category, five finalists studying Japanese as either a degree or non-degree course at advanced level took to the floor and shared their heartfelt messages to an enthralled audience.

Finalists in this category gave their speeches without visual aids or PowerPoint slides, and additionally responded to questions posed by the interlocutor, Ms Nozomi Yamaguchi, Senior Language Tutor at the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures at the University of Manchester.

The first prize was awarded to Thomas Merryfield, 4th year student at the University of Edinburgh, for his speech Towards a Society of Coexistence: Rethinking Minority and Majority Relations from an LGBT Perspective, which, through a reflection on his lived experiences, explored the complexities of acceptance and coexistence in today’s society.

The second-place prize went to Leon Fan, 4th year at the University of Edinburgh, for his speech titled To Shine Even in Loneliness: The Story of a Lonely Immigrant. The touching message of keeping your courage and shining, even during feelings of loneliness and the struggles of living abroad, resonated with many in the room.

The three talented runners-up in this category were: Alexander Campbell Brow, the University of Cambridge (The Current State of Animal Welfare in Modern Japan); Peter Ashton, SOAS University of London (A Re-evaluation of Escapism); and Carol Pui Yi Liu, the University of Leeds (The Invisible Bridge in a Cup of Tea).

Group Presentation Category

The last category of the day was the Group Presentation category, where students learning Japanese at the beginner level gave presentations in pairs or groups, using PowerPoint slides, on a topic related to countries outside Japan.

All five presentations had been selected as prize-winning entries during the initial screening stage. This year’s winning presentations were: The Best First Date in the UK by the team Romance Amateurs, University of Reading; Congratulations on your 200th birthday!!! by the team The Warwick Express, University of Warwick; A History of British Subcultures by the team Chippy Barm, University of Lancashire; Diverse English accents around the world by the team Kaleidoscope of Languages, Imperial College London; and last but not least La Buse and Piracy’s Glory during the 18th Century by the team Pirates of Lock Ness, University of Edinburgh.

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The speeches and presentations were followed with a Japanese sing-along session led by the talented Ms Yuko Hasegawa-Arango and enthusiastic volunteers from King’s College London. It was wonderful to see everyone, even the audience, get involved in singing some traditional Japanese tunes!

Continuing the celebratory mood from the sing-along, the Awards Ceremony then began. In a speech, Mr Kaoru Miyamoto, Director of the Japan Foundation, London, shared that Keele University’s Collection of Flowering Cherries has been awarded the prestigious Ambassador’s Commendation by the Ambassador of Japan, after two Keele students presented the beautiful collection at the Japanese Speech Contest in 2023 and spoke about the power of language to bring people together. This was followed by congratulatory remarks from Chief Judge Dr Natsuko Perera, Chair of the British Association for Teaching Japanese as a Foreign Language and Lecturer in Japanese and Language Acquisition, School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics, SOAS University of London.

All finalists in every category received some great prizes from our generous sponsors, and following this we concluded the day with a photo session and celebratory drinks reception. Ms Miyuki Nagai, Coordinator of the 21st Japanese Contest for University Students at the British Association for Teaching Japanese as a Foreign Language, opened the reception with a toast before attendees were invited to celebrate the occasion.

It was an honour to welcome this year’s talented finalists, along with friends, family, teachers of Japanese and  audience members, to Bush House Auditorium at King’s College London for this year’s Finals Day. We hope that everyone thoroughly enjoyed this year’s contest, and it further motivates students of Japanese and Japanese Studies to deepen their knowledge of the language and the country.

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[Download the event programme]

[Download speech summaries and presentation abstracts (English)]

[View speech and presentation videos (Japanese)] - comming soon

[View photos from Finals Day]

[See event information on the BATJ website]

A very special thank you goes to all the students who entered the contest, their teachers and supporting friends and family, the judges and interlocuter, the audience members, King’s College London, and BATJ, without whom the 21st edition of the speech contest would not be such a success.

We give heartfelt thanks to the generous sponsors of the 21st Japanese Speech Contest for their kind support:The 21st Japanese Speech Contest for University Students was jointly organised by the British Association for Teaching Japanese as a Foreign Language (BATJ) and the Japan Foundation, London, in collaboration with King’s College London. Thank you very much to the dedicated staff and volunteers for their time and hard work to make the day run smoothly.