In my role as Tournament Director of the inaugural World Youth Scrabble Championships, I’d like to congratulate you all on your selection and to welcome you to this wonderful corner of the world, Wollongong. Over the course of the next few days, you’ll find out lots of things about me, including the fact that I used to be a drama teacher -hence my love of words and initial attraction to Scrabble - and I have a crazy cat, who’s not very good at Scrabble but loves to sit on the board when you’re trying to play. When I’m not busy directing Scrabble tournaments (I have directed three World Championships and two other World masters events), I lecture in Educational Psychology at the University of Wollongong and have a special interest in gifted students. As accomplished Scrabble players, you’re probably in this category, so if I look at you as if I’m analysing you, don’t panic, it’s just the way I am.
We have a diverse collection of participants for this event, ranging in age from 10 to 17 and from 14 countries around the world. There are competitors who have travelled from the other side of the world to get here and others who live around the corner. During this event, you will have lots of chances to meet across the Scrabble board and to get to know each other socially as well. You all have in common a love of (or obsession with) Scrabble, a game that provides you with the opportunity to sharpen your thinking skills and continually challenge yourself. These kinds of skills are important life-skills but also vital for further study. Therefore, it’s appropriate that this tournament is taking place at the University of Wollongong, a university with an international reputation for academic and research excellence. We have twice been voted University of the Year and recently named in the top 200 universities in the world.
The important thing to remember is that I am there specifically to ensure that the tournament runs smoothly and fairly for all players, so if you have any issues at all, you need to call me at the time. Don’t complain afterwards! Finally, I wish you all the very best, both for the Scrabble and for the new friendships you will forge here.
Dr Wilma Vialle
Associate Professor & Director of Graduate Teaching
University of Wollongong
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