International University Students Are Finalists in the World Russian Language Championship
The World Russian Language Championship will be held from October 16 to December 17, 2025, with the support of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation. In 2025, all teams are divided into divisions based on geographic distribution: neighboring countries, Africa, Asia and Oceania, America, and Europe. The qualifying rounds, semifinals, and the third-place game were held remotely, while the final and superfinal will be held in person in December 2025 in Moscow.
The championship is an international competitive and educational event in which participants demonstrate their knowledge not only of the Russian language but also their ability to argue their point of view, conduct debates, and solve logical problems. The players' goal is to demonstrate not only a high level of proficiency in Russian but also an understanding of contemporary culture, the cultural code of native Russian speakers, teamwork skills, creativity, and resourcefulness. The championship involves solving puzzles, participating in debates, and participating in games.
The "Venizolanos" team of students from Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas (National Research University) from Venezuela will compete for victory in the finals. The team includes Venezuelan students from their first and second years: Francisco González (team captain), Alberto Alava, Camila Velázquez, Miguel Velázquez, and Gianna Giampaoli. The team is coached by Irina Aleksandrova, Senior Lecturer in the Russian Language Department.
During the semifinal stage, "Level of Truth," which took place on November 19, 2025, the participants immersed themselves in a detective story, where each task was a new plot twist. Their task was to separate truth from lies, find hidden meanings, uncover contradictions, and select only reliable information. All this was based on a deep understanding of the Russian language, logic, and intuition. In mid-December 2025, the Gubkin University team will face a discussion game in the finals to reach a compromise between the teams.
