Over President’s Day Weekend, junior Andy Choy competed at the Harvard National High School Invitational Forensics Tournament. Choy’s invitation to attend was a high honor, as the tournament is among the most prestigious in the country.
“Competing at the Harvard National Tournament is a great opportunity for every high school debater, sometimes made rare by its costly transportation and lodging expenses,” Choy said. “The expense was a major reason why I have not competed at the tournament in past years, so it was thrilling to participate for the first time. My main goal for the tournament was to win my second bid to this year’s Tournament of Champions, America’s most prestigious high school debate event, so I focused simply on staying composed and debating well.”
The junior competes under the Congressional Debate format; the format simulates real methods of American Congress. For the particular event, debaters are free to decide whether they oppose or support the proposed legislation. Judges decide who advances based on the competitor’s speaking, questioning, and engagement in the debate.
“I was a Congressional Debate quarterfinalist of the 2024 Harvard National Tournament,” Choy said. “Though this was a great honor, I am personally disappointed in this result since I believe I could have performed much better had I debated in the quarterfinal session with more confidence.”
While the junior expresses disappointment in his results, his ability to compete with such composure and stride is impressive nonetheless- especially considering the inconsistency the debate program has recently faced.
“I joined the speech and debate team when I first enrolled at Lovejoy as a freshman,” Choy said. “Two of our speech and debate coaches have come and gone since then, but I am still here.”
All in all, Choy’s teachers and peers could not be more proud of his achievements. The Harvard National High School Invitational Forensics Tournament was one for the books!
“Andy Choy has had a tremendous season. We are so happy to have his leadership in class and on the tournament circuit. He is going to do great things,” speech and debate coach Mrs. Morrison Tuason said.
