WIDPSC History
The World Individual Debating and Public Speaking Championships (WIDPSC) is an annual international championship for individual high school-level students representing different countries.
It was founded in 1988 and was created in the same year as the World Schools Debating Championships, partly to provide an equivalent international championship centered on public speaking and individual performance.
The first WIDPSC was hosted by Reading Blue Coat School in England before beginning to rotate internationally. Over time, the championship has been hosted in a range of countries and has developed into one of the major international competitions for student speakers and debaters.
The championship usually runs for 6 or so days and combines preliminary competition, final rounds, excursions or activities, and a formal closing banquet. Grand finals are a distinctive part of the event and treated as showcase rounds highlighting the strongest competitors in the field.