Students from Sichuan International Studies University (SISU) won one second prize and three excellence awards at the 2026 National Russian Language Competition, held Nov. 6–8 at Shanghai International Studies University. The results marked SISU's best performance in the competition to date.

Yang Yicong, a third-year graduate student specializing in Russian interpreting, placed second nationwide in the graduate division, achieving the university’s highest-ever ranking in the competition. Three other students also received excellence awards: Liu Tiancai in the freshman and sophomore division, Wang Jiachen in the junior and senior division, and He Jianke in the graduate division.

Organized by the Ministry of Education’s Department of International Cooperation and Exchanges and hosted by Shanghai International Studies University, the competition attracted more than 400 Russian language students from 155 universities across China. The preliminary round took place online Oct. 24, followed by the semifinals and finals at the university's Songjiang campus in Shanghai.

The competition consisted of three rounds. The preliminary round assessed contestants’ vocabulary, grammar, knowledge of Russia, Chinese–Russian translation and writing. In the semifinals, contestants delivered prepared speeches and gave impromptu oral responses to video prompts. The final round tested consecutive interpreting skills through dialogue-based exercises.

Shao Nanxi, dean of SISU’s School of Russian Studies, and faculty member Yang Zhihan provided one-on-one coaching to the contestants ahead of the competition. Yang Zhihan also accompanied the team to Shanghai. Jin Shuxian, an international faculty member, offered individualized training in pronunciation, spoken communication, critical thinking and cross-cultural interpretation.

Xu Manlin, academic dean of the School of Russian Studies and a member of the Russian Language Subcommittee of the Ministry of Education’s Foreign Language Teaching Advisory Committee, served on the competition’s supervisory panel.

The National Russian Language Competition is one of China’s largest and most influential competitions for university students majoring in Russian. It is also part of an ongoing initiative to promote educational and cultural exchanges between China and Russia. Winners of first, second and third prizes are eligible for government-sponsored scholarships administered by the China Scholarship Council to study in Russia.

The School of Russian Studies, whose undergraduate Russian program has received national first-class program recognition, plans to further integrate academic competitions into teaching and learning. The school also aims to update its teaching methods in response to technological developments, particularly artificial intelligence, and strengthen its training of Russian language professionals.

Yang Yicong (second from right) wins second prize in the graduate division

of the 2026 National Russian Language Competition.

  Yang Yicong performs dialogue interpreting during the final round of the competition.