World University Debating Championship 2019 Experience

The World University Debate Championship, more commonly referred to as WUDC, is the biggest debate tournament in existence. One in particular that I was involved in was WUDC 2020 in Bangkok, Thailand. This is the closest WUDC has been held to Indonesia for the past 5 years since the one held in Malaysia in 2015. For this competition the people that partook in it were Liana Tan and Adriel Soengadi as the debaters and myself (Naufal Basyah) as the independent adjudicator. An independent adjudicator is basically a trainee adjudicator from each competing institution, meaning we would have the job to adjudicate or judge debates under the watch of the main invited adjudicators and also the chair adjudicator and their deputies. Adjudicating is a vital role to play in any debate tournament as they would be deciding the ranks of each debate chamber and ultimately who will move on to the elimination rounds, and in tournaments with this independent trainee adjudicator system would have 3 different levels of adjudicator in each debate chamber. Trainee adjudicator being one with no voting power and the most common starting point, panel being one that does have voting power, and chair being the one that leads the session and not only assessing the debater but also panels and trainees. Chair’s job is basically to ensure decisions are made properly and for the independent adjudicator to be able to progress throughout the tournament should they show merit i.e. trainee becoming panel and panel becoming chair.

WUDC was not the only international competition that BIPEDS partook in, there was Asia British Parliamentary(ABP) and there was also a similarly formatted international competition like Australs in that year that we unfortunately could not join. All of them being on a slightly smaller scale than WUDC. That being said, 2 out of the 3 members of WUDC delegates (Adriel and I) did not join ABP. In addition, since we are also one of the newer members, WUDC would be our first international competition. That being said, it was not encouraging to have your first international competition to be the biggest one of the year. The biggest comfort that I took from it was the fact that Bangkok is so close and is a place I have never visited before. I felt the tension and nervousness months before the competition, I was sweating bullets just thinking about how big and diverse the competition will be. Local competition has become quite the routine for us, hence the only focus we need to exert was in the debate chamber. Since I could be considered as a somewhat asocial person, mingling and talking to others are already difficult. Adjustment in local competition comes from months of conditioning. But WUDC being the biggest competition of them all is different. Nothing about it would feel familiar as the 434 teams from 50 different countries means it’s a pool of strangers that I have yet to see in a competition. Foreign competition would not be too bad in hindsight as usually I would just manage along the way. The biggest concerns are people coming from well known places like Yale, Oxford, Harvard, etc. These ivy leagues became quite a threatening presence as we are so used to putting them on a pedestal. It is not just about being around them either, it is also that the team and I have to actively compete with some of them throughout the tournament.

As I arrived at the dreaded day, I was fortunate enough to be able to grab my chance as a panel adjudicator. Meaning that I would already have voting power from the start. While that is comforting for the first few seconds of hearing it, it quickly turned into a huge weight on my shoulder as the first round started. Keep in mind that I would be adjudicating for 9 grueling preliminary rounds. Most of my rounds consist of ESL(English as Second Language) speakers and some are even natives like Americans. Initially I felt anxious, I was constantly worried about slip-ups and how weird my accent would sound to some. Some optics that, perhaps in hindsight, did not matter in the slightest. But the biggest realization comes after hearing the debaters and fellow adjudicators throughout the first couple of rounds. I noticed the energy, the uses of some key words, the mannerisms for all debaters across nations and universities are quite similar. Debaters from China, India, or U.S. are all connected by the same intoxicating spirit of debate the rest of us are fueled by. I spent months being scared of what would be different in the competition just to end up being more surprised about how familiar it was. The most notable moments were when I was in the room with Harish Natarajan, the person that beat IBM’s debating Artificial Intelligence(A.I.). Having someone with that reputation made quite the opportunity that I would not have been given had I not joined BIPEDS a year or so prior. Having him lead the session and explain his thoughts on it was the rare chance I could pick the brains of someone that so many admires. His winning over the A.I. was a symbol of how regardless of empirical knowledge the machine was capable of, it was still no match to the subtle and well-rounded tactics of humans. The irony of putting these big debaters on a pedestal is seeing them as beyond humans and machines like in their tactics and knowledge pool. Yet this person shows that what makes them great is the optimization of things that all humans (including us new debaters) have innately. Another moment on note was just being able to sit next to the very ivy leagues that I was so afraid of as equals. Being a fellow panel to another independent adjudicator from Yale was quite the sobering moment. Showing how much I was capable of after months of competition and preparation that BIPEDS and debate in general has given me.

Besides the work, there were also social gatherings. Big events to welcome the participants and nights just to hang out and talk to the others in between all those stressful rounds. Huge amounts of pretty great food and, to those of age, drinks would be a great way to relax and step out of the debater armor and back to reality of being in a new place. Interacting with people from all over the globe that shares the same interest or passion as you or alternatively your fellow Indonesians. Near the hotel we also found a small night market and a seven eleven which makes for quite the late night munchies trip quite fun everyday. While communication was sometimes an issue, we did manage using google translate and text to speech. These days not even the language barrier can fully stop you from having a good time. On top of those, there would also be free days in which you can travel the town with your group. So as they say, work hard play hard is quite the motto in WUDC that I’m sure extends not just the one we attended.

In the end, WUDC has become quite the big highlight of my tenure in BIPEDS and even my college life. At best, it can be the most eye opening event that stimulates both your critical thinking and your traveling urge. And at worst, the traveling part will still ring true.

by: Naufal F. Basyah