Kia ora,
I am Nicole, a Year 12 student who would like to share my achievement at the Auckland Regionals 2025 Lions’ Young Speechmakers Competition, with hopes to inspire others.
On 31 May, 2025, I was beyond humbled to have placed First in this speechmaking competition for the Auckland region. I competed against fifteen very promising and bright speakers who spoke about various issues that impacted youth. There were two speech categories that we were all asked to participate in; the first one being a prepared speech of five-six minutes, while the second being an impromptu speech of one-two minutes with one minute of preparation.
My prepared speech was titled ‘Ko wai au?’ In which I shared my experience as an immigrant in Aotearoa, and the rampant racism that affects us to this day. I was then given a prompt of “And then she…” for my impromptu speech. To be completely honest, I struggled with the pressures of time in deciding what to speak about. But ultimately I landed on one topic that deeply resonated with me; ‘And then she…became unapologetically her.’ I emphasised the importance of removing ourselves from the status quo, and to resist from being confined into stereotypical boxes.
I would highly recommend this competition to everyone as it is a platform that gives us a platform to inspire others with our knowledge and experiences. And above all, it is a valuable learning experience that has allowed me to learn about others’ ideas and cultures.
I, along with a peer from Dilworth College who had placed Second, will be competing at the National Speech Finals at New Plymouth in August.
By Nicole Lao