In Michaelmas Term, Wellington College entered and hosted a round of the Goethe Institut’s National German Debating Competition for the first time. On 6th December, Emily Gubby (L6, W, Captain) led her teammates Beatrice Mayer (L6, Ap), Ben Barker-Goldie (L6, Bn) and John Hatton (5th, Bd) to victory in their first-round fixture against the formidable Tiffin School. Presented with the difficult task of debating against opposition who experience a mandatory school year abroad, these talented Wellingtonians presented a variety of well-prepared arguments and worked incredibly efficiently as a team to devise clever rebuttals, convincingly winning the fixture.

Having made it into the second round of the competition, our German debaters then travelled to Coloma Convent Girls’ School on 30th January to present their arguments for a plastic ban in Europe. Whilst they showed great skill and adeptness, their opponents did too, resulting in one of the closest matches of the competition so far. After much deliberation, the judges finally decided in Wellington’s favour, paving the path to the third round of the competition in March. A special mention goes to John Hatton for holding his own as a Fifth Former in a Lower Sixth competition.