Ateneo Teams Make History After Reaching Grand Finals of Prominent Debate Competition

For the first time in history, the Philippines is set to compete in the grand finals of the World Universities Debating Championship (WUDC). Representing the country in one of the world’s most prominent debating competitions are four students from Ateneo de Manila University.

WUDC is modeled after the British Parliamentary Debate format in academic debate tournaments, which follows four teams of two people in each debate. Ateneo will be sending two teams to go against competitors from Zagreb and the London School of Economics.

Ateneo 1 Team placed second in the Open Category securing 24 out of 27 points. Ateneo 2 Team, on the other hand, came in 14th place with 19 out of 27 points. The first team is composed of Ignacio Villareal and Mikko Vitug, while David Africa and Luigi Alcañeses make up the second team.

This recent milestone is regarded as “the highest break any Philippine institution in WUDC history and the highest number any Asian institution has achieved,” expressed Ateneo de Manila.

Source: GMA News