Brazilian representative Monica Cunha da Silva won the final championship of the 13th International Chinese-Bridge Competition held in China on August 3. About 126 competitors from 87 countries gathered in Changsha, capital of Hunan province, for the finals. The competitors were regional winners who had competed in a series of preliminary screenings that included Chinese language ability, history knowledge and talent shows. Silva was also awarded the title of "Star of the Chinese Language" because of her performance. This is the first time a Brazilian competitor has won the championship in the history of the Chinese-Bridge Competition, which was started in 2002 by the Office of Chinese Language Council International (Hanban) to encourage more foreign students to learn Chinese language and culture. [Zhang Fan/China Daily]