By Malith Jayaweera
After the semi-finals of Speech Olympiad IX, the time had come for another wonderful Gavel meeting. The Toastmaster, Chamanthi Jayaweera, started the round robin session by mentioning her adventures in Poland where she had got the opportunity to present in front of world class CEOs, representing her team in CIMA GBC (Global Business Challenge) finals.
“What would happen if you’re nervous?” was proposed as the toast by the Toastmaster. Everyone elaborated their experiences. However the Toastmaster agreed with Merl Chandana who suggested that the energy generated by nervousness can be beneficial if it can be controlled.
After an unusual round robin session, Sachithra Pathiraja took over as the Table Topics Master. The following topics were displayed on the whiteboard which was just next to the head table.
- I love me more than anybody
- Maybe I’m crazy
- Why am I still single
- My school
- The sweetest memory in my life
- The life is a T-20 cricket match
- I regret about it
- What if I hadn’t been selected to UOM
- I am proud to be a Sri Lankan
- Speech Olympiad 2015
The three finalists of Speech Olympiad were first given the opportunity to deliver impromptu speeches with a preparation time of one minute. Samadhi Poornima delivered her speech on the topic “when the going gets going”. Samavath Mallawarachchi and Sandaru Karunasiri delivered their speeches respectively.
The president, Vibhanu delivered his speech on the topic “Maybe I’m crazy” starting from politicians, presidents and giving a marvellous twist at the end. Next, Malith started his speech with a story from his childhood. It was about how he had learnt to swim. He gave a twist at the end for the topic “I regret about it”.
Next, Chamanthi began mentioning how selfless she was. However towards the end of her speech she accepted that her prejudice was wrong and that she was truly selfish, the topic being “I love me more than anybody”.
Praveen, a young Gavelier from level one, elaborated on how he had lost speech Olympiad, selecting the topic “I regret about it”. It was truly inspirational because it gave the motivation for fellow speakers to improve.
The best was yet to come. Yasanka Jayawardane delivered an astonishing speech on his love for food using the topic “What if I hadn’t been selected to UOM?” He spoke from the bottom of his heart which was also appraised by one of the evaluators, Merl Chandana. After a brief set of evaluations the control was handed back to the Toastmaster.
The Grammarian, Malith, presented a report correcting the error of a speech topic: “What if I haven’t been selected to UOM”. The correct usage when referring to the imaginary past, it should be “What if I hadn’t been selected to UOM”. He also used a few examples to distinguish the usage. Pointing at the Toastmaster, he said “I wish if she wasn’t here”, to demonstrate the correct usage using the imaginary past.
The controls were returned to the president, who subsequently adjourned the meeting.
Role players for the day
Toastmaster –Chamanthi Jayaweera
Table Topics Master –Sachithra Pathiraja
Timer – Praveen Kumarasinghe
Ah Counter – Kasun Rosa
Grammarian – Malith Jayaweera
General Evaluator –Timal Mohan
Table Topics Evaluator- Merl Chandana and Vibhanu Arachchige