Home > News and Events > 2017 > Luke wins International Public Speaking Competition

18 May 2017

Former St Kevin’s College, Toorak, student, Luke Macaronas, has taken out the prestigious international public speaking competition, after last year winning the Plain English Speaking competition for Victoria and then Australia while completing Year 12.
 

The 2017 International Public Speaking Competition hosted 45 participants from 42 countries across the globe to take part in a week of cultural exchange and public speaking contests in London. All participants were national winners of public speaking competitions run by international ESUs/partner organisations in their own country.

The Grand Final on Friday 12 May at The Royal Institution saw participants from Mexico, Canada, Australia, China, England and Wales, Sri Lanka and Hong King battled it out for the prestigious winner’s trophy.

Finalists wrote and delivered speeches on the theme ‘Peace is not an absence of war’.

Luke’s speech entitled ‘The Inconvenient Truth’ was an emotive speech on drone attacks and the state of modern warfare.

Sophia Cannon, Chair of Judges, commented that although the judges were not unanimous, ‘We could see the depth and the strength of this (the winners) argument’.

‘Not only was it well held, it was maintained and importantly the interventions from the floor, which many politicians, many lawyers, and even your parents will attest to are difficult, but this was a phenomenon.’

Last month, Luke also accepted a VCE High Achiever Award at the Premier’s VCE Awards.