Li Hao

    FOR Seau Bee Groh, known by her nickname, Doris, it was an unexpected honor to claim the first prize at the final of the first Shenzhen Expats Chinese Talent Competition on Friday.

    The competition was hosted by the Organizing Committee of the Shenzhen Speaks Foreign Languages Campaign and the Information Office of the Shenzhen Municipal Government, and organized by the Shenzhen Daily.

    Doris, 42, was one of eight expats from eight countries who competed in the final after emerging from 15 contestants in the semifinals earlier this month.

    The mother of 9-year-old twin boys, Doris spoke on a required topic “I have a Shenzhen dream” in fluent Chinese, which had the audience thinking she was Chinese.

    “Shenzhen used to be a small fishing village and the economic achievements in 30 years is a miracle. I look forward to a more prosperous future for the city,” Doris said in her speech, showing her knowledge of Shenzhen’s history.

    More surprisingly, she wrote Chinese calligraphy after singing a Chinese song about Shenzhen’s development.

    “I thought this song would strike a chord with the Chinese audience,” she said.

    She wrote down five Chinese characters, literally meaning “Shenzhen’s spring,” bringing loud applause from the audience.

    “It took me only three minutes to learn this calligraphy,”said Doris, who learned Chinese as a child in Malaysia and continued learning Chinese during her stay in Beijing where she worked as a lecturer at a hospital.

    She signed up for a Chinese training class when she arrived in Shenzhen two months ago.

    “We are very proud of our mother,” said her twin boys.

    Being a runner-up was “satisfactory” for 8-year-old Norwegian, Caisa Quinn, the youngest in the final.

    The little girl stole the limelight with a Chinese folk song, “Jasmine,” which is familiar to all Chinese and even some expats.

    “I wish I could become an ambassador to connect Shenzhen and Norway in the future,” Caisa said in her “Shenzhen dream” speech.

    Mari Rose Anikieva of Russia shared second prize while another five contestants shared third prize.

    All contestants played out a love drama at the beginning of the competition.

    Contestants were presented with certificates and prizes ranging from 8,000 yuan to 2,000 yuan.

    “There are almost 700,000 expats living in Shenzhen. The Chinese talent competition was aimed at encouraging expats to learn Chinese to become better informed of Shenzhen. By speaking Chinese, they are able to become more involved in local culture and life,” said Zhou Guangming, vice director of the Standing Committee of Shenzhen Municipal People’s Congress.

    More than 300 expatriates from 30 countries entered the competition.