Senior Nationals
The Senior National Debate Championships is the recognized Canadian championship tournament for senior high school debaters. Competitors are selected by their provincial associations, usually at provincial championships. The tournament host rotates around the country.
2022 Championships – Online (Zoom), Ontario (OSDU)
Due to the continuing pandemic COVID19, the Canadian National Debate Championships hosted by the Ontario Student Debating Union was held online once again from April 29th to May 1st, 2022. The tournament was won by Andrew Shi and Daniel Lu of Ontario. Alex Logan of British Columbia won the Harold Kyte Award, as the best individual debater. Ontario won the John Baty Award for top province.
Tournament History
The National Championships were started in 1998 by Sydney Academy in partnership with debate associations and schools from Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Quebec, Ontario, and Saskatchewan. Since then, the Championships has become recognized as the top competition in the country.
| Host | Champions | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | School | Recipient | Prov. |
| 2022 English | OSDU – Online | Daniel Lu and Andrew Shi | ON |
| 2022 French | DSABC– Online | Silvia Xie and Vivianne Darveau | ON |
| 2021 English | QSDA – Online | Alyssa Li Sarenna McKellar | ON |
| 2021 French | OSDU– Online | Bianca Maselli Emma Asheghian | QC |
| 2020 English | MSDA – Online | Max Rosen Diba Heydary | ON |
| 2020 French | Crofton House School – BC Online | Emily Ni Nikki Wu | BC |
| 2019 English | Sacred Heart School – NS | Amelia Hadfield Jaylynn Barth | BC |
| 2019 French | Lower Canada College – QC | Alice Chen Abby Robitaille | ON |
| 2018 English | Holy Heart of Mary High School – NL | Alykhan Jetha Jonathon Liu | ON |
| 2018 French | Holy Heart of Mary High School – NL | Andrei Comlosan-Pop Nicole Richmond | ON |
| 2017 English | West Point Grey Academy – BC | Jack Farrell Ben Gillis | NS |
| 2017 French | West Point Grey Academy – BC | Corina Picui Anna Saint | BC |
| 2016 | Walter Murray Collegiate Institute – SK | Tatiana Kurschner Lily Kim | BC |
| 2015 | University of Toronto Schools – ON | Lloyd Lyall Samantha Starkey | BC |
| 2014 | St. John’s-Ravenscourt – MB | Lloyd Lyall Samantha Starkey | BC |
| 2013 | ADSA | Nasra Moumin Areeb Salim | SK |
| 2012 | Lower Canada College – QC | Tae-Hu Kim Anson Kwok | ON |
| 2011 | Sacred Heart School – NS | Elizabeth Stratton Anisah Mahomed | ON |
| 2010 | Glenlyon Norfolk – BC | Jonathan Carson Iqbal Kassam | BC |
| 2009 | Campbell Collegiate – SK | Jonathan Carson Iqbal Kassam | BC |
| 2008 | William Aberhart – AB | Helenaz Hajifattahi Sean Husband | BC |
| 2007 | Upper Canada College – ON | Madeleine Ballard Caroline Wagner | QC |
| 2006 | Lower Canada College – QC | Madeleine Ballard Corey Wolman | QC |
| 2004 | Newfoundland Student Debate Union | Sheldon McCormick Blair MacDonald | NS |
| 2003 | William Aberhart – AB | Alex Blank Harry Schiff | ON |
| 2002 | St. John’s-Ravenscourt – MB | Rowan Dorin Sara Robertson | MB |
| 2001 | Glenlyon-Norfolk – BC | Jessica Prince Scott Murray | BC |
| 2000 | Ashbury College – ON | Elliot Tapper Ben Wolinsky | ON |
| 1999 | Branksome Hall – ON | Rory Gillis Sarah Pottle | ON |
| 1998 | Sydney Academy – NS | Andrew Magnus Tony Navaneelan | NS |
Resources and Contact
The National Championships uses the Canadian National Debate Format (CNDF), which is a blend of the Canadian Parliamentary and World Schools styles. It is described in the following documents:
- Official CNDF Rules
- 2010 Nationals CNDF Ballot
- 2010 Nationals Adjudicators Guide
- 2010 Nationals Judges Briefing (pptx)
- CNDF Moderator Script
The National Championships is governed by a committee independent of the CSDF which is chaired by the current tournament host. You can read the National Championships By-Laws (Revised 2014) and National Championships Board of Governors. You can also read minutes from past committee AGMs:
- 2022 – Online – chaired by Chris George
- 2021 – Online – Montreal, QC (QSDA)
- 2020 – Online – Winnipeg, MB
- 2019 – Halifax, NS
- 2018 – St. John’s, NFLD
- 2017 – Vancouver, BC
- 2016 – Saskatoon, SK
- 2015 – Toronto, ON
- 2014 – Winnipeg, MB
- 2013 – Calgary, AB
- 2012 – Montreal, QC
- 2011 – Halifax, NS
- 2010 – Victoria, BC
- 2009 – Regina, SK
- 2008 – Calgary, AB
- 2007 – Toronto, ON
- 2006 – Montreal, QC
- 2004 – St. John’s, NL
Sponsors
We appreciate and graciously thank all sponsors for their support of our Senior High National Championships each year!
