The Finals Day of the 2026 Japanese Language Championship for Young Learners UK (JaLaChamp) was held at Japan House London on Saturday, 20 June.

JaLaChamp is a contest for primary and secondary school students studying Japanese. It consists of two categories: the Speech Category, for secondary school students studying Japanese as a foreign language, and the Video Category, which is open to primary and secondary school students studying Japanese, including those who have previously stayed in Japan and those who speak Japanese at home. 

In the Speech Category, finalists gave speeches on a topic of their choice, followed by a question-and-answer session with the judges. In the video category, finalists create original videos using their Japanese skills. This year the videos were based on the theme, “My/Our Favourite Sandwiches/ 私（たち）のおすすめのサンドイッチ”. This year, Finals Day was divided into two sessions: a morning session for primary students and an afternoon session for secondary school students.

In the morning session, primary video category finalists were invited to attend and finalist videos were shown on a large screen. Finalists in this category have a Japanese level of A1-A2 (JF standard for Japanese-language Education/CEFR). Four videos were screened and the audience was introduced to a variety of favourite sandwiches, including cream sandwiches, an onigiri-inspired recipe, and even a combination of sushi and sandwiches. After each screening, the finalists talked about their experiences of creating the sandwiches/onigiri and making their videos.

The screenings were followed by Finalist Connection Programme, during which pupils were grouped with students from different schools to take part in a Japan and UK themed quiz. The morning session was concluded with an award ceremony for the primary school finalists.

In the afternoon, the Speech Category Finals took place, and our four outstanding finalists delivered their speeches in front of a live audience and a panel of judges. The finalists delivered their speeches on a wide range of topics. Some finalists reflected on their personal experiences of learning Japanese, while others explored socio-economic and contemporary issues including the importance of language learning and the role of doujin culture in Japan.  

First place in the Speech Category was awarded to Eleanor Waterhouse, a Year 12 student at Hockerill Anglo-European College for her speech entitled: “What I learned from failure / 失敗から学んだこと”. In her speech, she reflected on how communicating in Japanese had taught her the importance of embracing mistakes as an essential part of language learning and personal growth.

The three talented runners-up were: Fern Ryan, Hockerill Anglo-European College (Japanese culture in Australia and how it has shaped my identity); Max Misra, the Manchester Grammar School (The Importance of Languages); and Rivka Cunningham, Pembrokeshire College (How does doujin culture promote youth creativity?).  

Following the Speech Category Finals, the shortlisted videos for the Secondary School Video Category were screened. This category is divided into two divisions: Division 1 for students with A1-A2 level Japanese (JF Standard for Japanese-language education/CEFR), and Division 2 for students with B1 level Japanese. Every single video was original and showcased the students’ creativity and individuality. Some adopted theatrical and cinematic approaches, while others used documentary-style interviews and reporting techniques. The shortlisted videos are now available to watch online.

 For this year’s guest talk, we invited Mr James Meredith, a fourth-year university student studying Japanese Studies at the University of Sheffield. Mr Meredith spoke about his experiences of studying Japanese, and how it has positively influenced his academic journey and career opportunities. He also shared practical advice for students learning the language.

The afternoon session was concluded with the award ceremony for secondary school finalists. All finalists received prizes, many of which were provided by our generous sponsors. 

We would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere appreciation to all of our finalists for their inspiring speeches and creative videos, which demonstrated their great Japanese language skills. We hope that participating in JaLaChamp has been a memorable milestone in their language learning journey, and we wish them every success in their future studies.

List of Awards

Speech Category

• First Place: Eleanor Waterhouse (Hockerill Anglo-European College)


• Runners-Up: Fern Ryan (Hockerill Anglo-European College); Max Misra (The Manchester Grammar School); Rivka Cunningham (Pembrokeshire College)

Video Category – Secondary School Division 2

• The Intriguing Mystery Award: Detective Sando/ サンドイッチの探偵 (Aquinas College)


• The Excellence in Creativity and Research Award: Francis (Eton College) 

Video Category – Secondary School Division 1

• The Cheltenham Ambassador Award: Aubin Cussen (Dean Close Preparatory School)


• The Magnificent Manga Award: Deli Dudes Productions (Dartford Grammar School)


• The Cinematic Samurai Award: Jiro Dreams of L6-Japanese's sandwich (Marlborough College)


• The Fantastic Creativity Award: The Totally Terrific Lasagne Masters (Students learning Japanese at Sherborne Girls)


• The Impeccable Style Award: Kanji Creators (Dartford Grammar School)


• The Epic Quest Award: 日本語トリオ (Whitgift School)


• The Great Cooperation Award: サンドイッチシェフ (Aquinas College)

Video Category – Primary School Division

• The Excellent Harmony Award: 3 (san) dreams (The Japanese Saturday School Acton)


• The Expert Chef Award: Clement Chan (St. Hugh of Lincoln Primary Catholic School)


• The Looks Delicious Award: Group Ohisama Ahaha (Ohisama Ahaha)


• The Great Inventors Award: Japanese Lunchtime Club (Blackthorns Community Primary Academy)

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Check out all the fantastic videos on our official YouTube channel and don’t forget to “like” them!

Download the JaLaChamp 2026 programme

View photos from JaLaChamp 2026 Finals Day 

View videos from JaLaChamp 2026 Finals Day - comming soon

We would like to thank our judges, interlocutor, special guest, and venue staff for all of their invaluable assistance in helping us to hold this event. This event would also not have been possible without the support of our generous sponsors: