After months of intense regional heats involving hundreds of young linguists from across the country, Benjamin (Sixth Form, PP) and Joshua (Sixth Form, MM) have triumphed in the final of the Joutes Oratoires Lycéennes, using their high-level knowledge of French vocabulary, impressive teamwork, and consumption of baked goods to win the prestigious title.

At the final in March, the pair took their place amongst the strongest teams in the country for the closing round of debates – winning three against tough opposition, including a particularly challenging contest with an Epsom College team, with very little time to prepare their final motion looking at the legitimacy of state violence (“L’Etat doit avoir le monopole de la violence”). While Benjamin and Joshua’s success was impressive in itself, their achievement is all the more inspiring given that they are both only in their first year of their sixth form studies.

Benjamin and Joshua said: “Winning a national competition like the Joutes Oratoires was hugely exciting and completely unexpected considering the strong opposition we faced throughout. To win a competition like this was also a very proud moment – it was a testament primarily to our teamwork, and to our ability to adapt and think on our feet. We made it through three rounds of debating – initial, then regional, then national rounds) – with three debates per round, in a total pool of over 300 schools!

“We knew going into initial rounds what the motions would be, so we discussed our points and strategies beforehand, and assembled some swanky vocabulary with which to bamboozle the opposition. However, very limited preparation was allowed in the final rounds, meaning our preparation was mainly centred around fuelling strategies for optimal performance, such as excessive madeleine consumption!”

The Joutes Oratoires Lycéenne is a competition open to all sixth form students in the UK, and is organised and hosted by the Institut français du Royaume-Uni. The event encourages pupils with a shared interest for French to practise languages in a creative and challenging way, with sparring matches between two teams. One team argues in favour of a statement, the other against it. Pupils demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of the French-speaking world by broaching current and captivating topics such as the environment and decolonisation, using the French language to form articulate and coherent arguments.