Oratorical World Championships 2021 Winners - Optimist International

St. Louis, MO, July 28, 2021 --(PR.com)-- In keeping with tradition, the sixth Annual Optimist International Oratorical World Championships came to a finale on July 23, 2021. The year’s theme, "Healing the World with Optimism," had Nayana Celine Xavier from Virginia, USA, from the Mid-Atlantic Region taking first place honors. Second place was awarded to Julia Abbott from California, USA from the West Coast Region. Third place went to Corinne Quynh Lan Marie Hoang from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada from the St. Lawrence Region.

Nayana Celine Xavier is a rising senior at Chantilly High School and staff writer for the school paper Purple Tide. She serves as the Senator of Chantilly Model UN, is a member of Future Health Leaders, and advocates for e-waste recycling. She is a strong believer in the power of student voices and the importance of sharing diverse stories.

The Oratorical Scholarship program is the accumulation of months of planning and teamwork from Optimist Clubs, Members, Staff, and Committees from around the globe. The program kicks off each year as soon as the Oratorical Committee and Staff release the years’ new theme and topic. From there, over 1000 Optimist Clubs and Members from around the world work to host local Oratorical events. This year, they saw their International Program expand with the addition of a speaker from Hong Kong.

On behalf of Optimist International, the Optimist International Foundation, and the Canadian Children’s Optimist Foundation, the Oratorical Committee were pleased to honor all scholarships for the Regionals and World Championship by fully funding thousands of students at all levels of Oratorical winners, totaling over $200,000 in scholarship dollars awarded for the year of 2021.

“The World Oratorical Championship is an opportunity for young people to compete against the best for significant scholarship money. More than that, though, the competition is a life changing experience for all who participate, no matter what level they reach in the competition. Many adults cite this competition as a turning point in their lives influencing their future career path.” - Optimist International President, Mark Weinsoff of Santa Barbara, California.

Optimist International, founded in 1919, is a service organization serving youth and communities around the globe. It has nearly 70,000 adult and youth members in more than 2,500 clubs in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, Mexico, and many other nations throughout the world. Carrying the motto “Bringing Out the Best in Youth, in our Communities, and in Ourselves,” Optimists conduct positive service projects that reach more than six million young people each year.