The event was attended by thousands, some of who overflowed from the venue and had to watch the event from large screens set up outside. Among the high-profile spectators were singers Erhan Güleryüz, Uğur Işılak and Mustafa Demirci as well as politicians, bureaucrats and local administrators including Konya Governor Aydın Nezih Doğan and Konya Mayor Tahir Akyürek. The top three students accepted their awards from Doğan and Akyürek.A 10-member jury composed of academics and poets awarded top honors to Osmani for her “Mehlika Sultan,” from among the students from 12 countries who took part in the competition. Övezmurat Altıyev from Turkmenistan and Mamacakip Kizi Aysulu from Kyrgyzstan placed second and the third, respectively.
The Olympiads, organized by the International Turkish Education Association (TÜRKÇEDER), bring hundreds of foreign students to Turkey each year from Turkish schools worldwide. This year’s International Turkish Language Olympiads, which include 750 students from 120 countries, has been promoted with the slogan, “We are speaking the same language.”
The event started with the crowd singing the Turkish national anthem, followed by a folk dance performance. “I was amazed with their performance in enthusiastically reciting the poems and their talent in using Turkish,” said Güleryüz, one of the jury members. Işılak joined Güleryüz in expressing his appreciation for the organizers of the event and also of those who educate students around the world. “I thank all those who made this real,” he said.
Professor Emine Yeniterzi of Selçuk University also lauded the initiative. “I thank all of those who have opened these schools, despite so many difficulties,” she said, adding that “it is such a self-sacrifice to move to a remote part of the world to educate the next generations without expecting any worldly gain whatsoever.”
