Simon Williams was ''ironically, speechless for once'' when he was named best speaker at the Otago-Southland Regional Russell McVeagh Debating Competition at the weekend.
And his success did not end there. The 17-year-old Bayfield High School debater was named in a team along with Courtney Cunningham (Columba College) and Connor Seddon (Logan Park High School) to represent Otago and Southland at the New Zealand competition in Wellington in August.
Simon was also a member of the Bayfield High School No 1 team, along with Jessica Todd (18) and Maura Turner (17), which won the regional competition on Sunday.
Jessica and Maura were ''ecstatic'' about the win, and credited much of their team's success to Simon's passion for wrangling.
''I do love arguing with people. It's always a pleasure,'' he said.
''It's thinking constructively and creatively - if more people did it, the world would be a better place,'' he said.
His team-mates, who were awarded highly commended speaker awards, said Simon was ''ironically, speechless for once'' when he was named best speaker.
Runners-up in the regional competition were Hamish Darling, Callum van-Dyk and Nick Robertson (John McGlashan College).
The competition, held at Columba College, attracted 22 teams.
Topics up for debate were the welfare system, making it mandatory for religious officials to officiate at same-sex marriages and skilled migrants being denied the opportunity to work in New Zealand.
