Posted by A 20 year-old Gambian student has won Miss Sports Challenge Award of the Friendship International Pageant in Chengdu, China.
Ms. Mariama Sanyang, a computer science major at the University of The Gambia, represented the country at the event held on 27 July, at China’s Province of Chengdu. She contested against 50 participants from 50 countries and emerged one of the two African awardees.
“Having bagged an award in representing my home, The Gambia, in a worldwide competition is by far the most ecstatic feeling I have ever felt in my life so far,” Ms. Sanyang remarked.
She said receiving the award on that worldwide stage did not only give her sense of accomplishment as a Gambian but by extension made her proud as an African.
The Gambia’s Charge d’Affaires ad interim of the Embassy of the Republic of The Gambia in Beijing, Ms. Fatou Kinneh Jobe, was invited and appointed as one of the judges to the event. Others on the jury panel included former Prime Minister of Thailand among other high level dignitaries from Hong Kong, Italy and Philippines.
Ms. Jobe thanked the organisers for the event, noting that it is geared towards promoting and strengthening cultural exchange and friendship between the People’s Republic of China and countries around the world especially The Gambia. She used the opportunity to commend the organisers of the event for extending invitation for Gambia’s participation. This, she added will promote people-to-people exchange which is in tandem with the framework of The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation(FOCAC).
The pageant, which had two previous editions in 2009 and 2010 respectively; also aims to promote its home-based country, China, not only as a modern and fast-rising economic global player in the world, but also a country which has a very rich culture stretching back nearly 4000 years and originated many of the foundations of the modern world.