Do Tue Anh, 18, is a 12th-grade student in the Chinese-language program at the Chu Van An High School for the Gifted.
Competing against 124 others from some 100 countries and territories at the Chinese Bridge competition on Sept. 22, she achieved one of the best results by a Vietnamese student since the competition changed its format in 2020.
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Do Tue Anh in a photoshoot ahead of the Chinese Bridge competition. Photo courtesy of her family |
Anh first became interested in Chinese as a child while watching “Journey to the West” with her grandparents.
She could not understand why the Chinese characters on the screen were “so complicated,” but they fascinated her.
Growing up in Lang Son, where her family’s business near the border gate brought her into regular contact with Chinese people, she gradually became interested in learning the language.
In ninth grade, she seriously started learning Chinese with the goal of gaining admission to a specialized Chinese class.
She says pronunciation was the hardest part at first particularly because she often confused the first and fourth tones.
There were characters whose meanings she understood and could write correctly but could not pronounce accurately, leaving listeners confused.
To improve, she worked through passages in HSK Chinese proficiency test preparation materials, practiced speaking with Vietnamese and Chinese friends, and used AI tools to correct her mistakes.
Her efforts paid off, and she gained admission to the Chu Van An High School for the Gifted with the highest entrance score among candidates applying for its Chinese-language program.
But unlike that goal-driven decision, the one to enter the Chinese Bridge competition came almost by chance following encouragement from her mother and homeroom teacher.
She had less than two months to prepare for the national round in May, which included a written test and question-and-answer section, speech, and talent performance.
She was pleasantly surprised to win first prize, which fetched her a place in the international competition in Tianjin, China, in September.
The international competition lasted about two weeks and consisted of four elimination rounds that narrowed the field first to 30 contestants and then 15, followed by the selection of continental champions and finally the world champion.
Each round comprised of question-and-answer sessions, debates, speeches, and talent performances.
Anh asked former Chinese Bridge contestants for study materials and spent as much time as possible practicing with her teacher.
“I had to study on the bus and even late at night after rehearsals,” she says.
For her, the hardest part was the multiple-choice section in the final, in which questions appeared on a computer screen and contestants had to answer immediately after the host finished reading them.
The topics included astronomy, science and technology, classical poetry, and traditional Chinese medicine.
Anh initially answered several questions incorrectly. After a few moments when she “panicked and lost my composure,” she looked toward the audience and saw her parents and teacher cheering her on. She gradually calmed down.
“I realized I couldn’t change the questions I’d already got wrong, so I needed to focus on the ones that came next,” she says.
She was particularly fond of the talent round.
She performed yangge, a traditional Chinese folk dance commonly seen during festivals and known for its lively style.
Before the competition, she spent several days in Hanoi taking lessons from an instructor before practicing on her own, sometimes until 1 a.m.
For the debate round, she and four other continental champions were placed on the same team. They competed against a team made up of Chinese students and winners from the previous year’s competition.
The motion was whether social media brings people closer together or drives them further apart.
Anh’s team argued that it brings people closer.
Each member had around 30 seconds to present an argument while the team had a total of 180 seconds to rebut the opponents.
Anh says the round demanded quick reactions because she had to keep track of her team’s arguments while also listening closely to the opposing side in order to respond effectively.
Despite the pressure, she says she enjoyed debating in Chinese at an international competition, which has made her more confident in presenting and defending her views.
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Do Tue Anh (C) at the international round of the Chinese Bridge competition in September 2026. Photo courtesy of her family |
Duong Thi Vinh, Anh’s homeroom and Chinese teacher, who accompanied her to the competition, describes her as eager to improve, responsible, and capable of studying independently.
Anh is the class monitor and performs well in all four Chinese-language skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
Vinh says, at the competition, Anh consistently made the most of whatever time she had to study and practice.
The most nerve-racking moment for Vinh came when Anh narrowly defeated an Indonesian contestant to become the Asian champion.
She says the result shows Anh’s competitive spirit and composure despite being on a major international stage.
After returning from the competition, Anh entered the contest to select the Lang Son Province team for the national excellent student competition.
She hopes to improve on the consolation prize she won in Chinese last year.
In future, she hopes to study in China and pursue a degree in economics or Chinese-language education.