Registration open · Closes 8 August 2026

Capstone x PolyU Summer Debate Classic 2026

Our annual back-to-school competition, co-hosted with The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Designed for new and experienced primary school debaters, and open to public, private and international schools across Hong Kong.

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Event A4 Poster
DateSunday, 16 August 2026
VenueThe Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon
FormatJunior WSDC · Teams of 3-5 · 4-min speeches
EligibilityPrimary debaters aged 9-12, all school types
DeadlineSaturday, 8 August 2026
20180825SKT1570

About Us

Inspiring Confidence and Leadership Through Debate Excellence

Capstone transforms aspiring speakers into confident leaders and masterful communicators. Our proven methodology and world-class instruction have established us as the premier debate and public speaking institution in Hong Kong and beyond.

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National Team Pipeline

Capstone dominates Hong Kong national team selections and places students on elite national teams worldwide, from England to Singapore.

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Proven Success

Champions need a proven system. Our comprehensive methodology breaks down complex skills into clear progression paths, transforming potential into excellence.

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Expert Coaching

Our coaches combine championship experience with proven teaching abilities. Each brings international competitive success and extensive teaching expertise.

Meet Our Coaches, Leaders & Innovators

Excellence breeds excellence. Join our championship coaching team.

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Mai

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Mai

Mai holds a first-class law degree from the University of Technology MARA in Malaysia. A thought leader in Asian debating, she previously held the position of Chief Executive Officer of the Malaysian Institute for Debate and Public Speaking, the Head of Debate at the largest debate institution in South Korea, the Convenor of the World Universities Debating Championship and the Chair of Asia BP Council. Currently, she serves as the Team Manager and Head Coach of WSDC Team Malaysia.

Mai has actively coached in Malaysia, South Korea and Hong Kong, with over fifty of her students qualifying for national teams across seven different countries. She is also deeply engaged in debate education throughout Asia, having hosted workshops and training camps in Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, Macao, China, and South Korea.

Aside from being the first Malaysian to achieve the milestone of being Asia’s Best Speaker at the United Asians Debating Championship (UADC), Mai also holds the record of being the only speaker to have spoken at four Asian BP finals. A tested judge, she has served the community at over 30 adjudication teams including Australs, Asia BP, UADC and ASDC, earning the recognition as a Top 5 Judge at varsity majors seven times. Mai retired from competitive debating with a total 18 championship titles and over 90 speaker awards to her name.

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Srijan

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Srijan

Srijan holds a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the Advanced College of Engineering and Management in Nepal.

A prominent figure in South Asian debating, he has coached Nepal’s National World Schools Debating Championship Team for two consecutive years (2022 and 2023). He has conducted hundreds of workshops for teachers and students at primary and higher secondary schools across Nepal.

Srijan is deeply engaged in debate education throughout South Asia, with a particular focus on Nepal. He has an extensive record as a Chief Adjudicator, serving as Deputy Chief Adjudicator (DCA) for the Asian British Parliamentary Debating Championship (ABP) in 2023 and the Australs Championship in 2022.

A highly sought-after judge, he has adjudicated at numerous prestigious international tournaments. Notable highlights include:

  • Judging the Open Finals of the United Asian Debating Championship (UADC) in 2023, where he was ranked 6th Best Judge overall.
  • Judging the ESL Finals of the Australs Championship (2021).
  • Judging the Open Semi-finals of the North American University Debating Championships (NAUDC) in 2020.
  • Judging the Partial Double Octofinals of the World Universities Debating Championship (WUDC) in 2022.
  • Judging the EFL Pre-Quarters of ABP in 2022.

As a competitor, Srijan reached the Open Finals of the United Asian Debating Championship (UADC) 2022.

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Naveen

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Naveen

Naveen hails from Taylor’s University in Malaysia, where they graduated with a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) with a focus on commercial and criminal law. They served as the Vice President, and then was unanimously elected as the President for the Taylors Debate Society during their time in university. Naveen’s debating career began as a young high school student that aimed to work their way to the top through hard work and effort; and these efforts paid off when Naveen was selected to represent Malaysia at the World Schools Debating Championship, whereby their first ever competitive run at the competition ended with them ranking as an Open Octofinalist. 

As Naveen made the transition to varsity debating, they were able to become the first Asian team in history to rank first after eight preliminary rounds at the Australasian Debating Championship in 2020, whereby Naveen also ranked as the Third Best Open Speaker in all of Australasia and ended their run as an Open Semi-finalist. In the same year, Naveen emerged as a Finalist at the United Asians Debating Championship and the Asian British Parliamentary debating championship, where they bagged Top Speaker awards in both competitions. Naveen also ranked as a Top Speaker and was an Open Semi-finalist at the Cambridge Intervarsity Debating Championship, as well as the Princeton Intervarsity Debating Championship. 

The culmination of Naveen’s career ended with them ranking as an Open Quarter-finalist at the Korea World Universities Debating Championships (WUDC) in 2021. Since then, Naveen has worked professionally as a debate instructor in Malaysia and China where their students have gone on to win numerous championships, including the NSDA USA Nationals Debating Championship Championship (Middle School Category) in 2023. Naveen is also certified as a TEFL teacher, and as a trainer, they hope to create an environment that holds students to a standard that their best self would expect of them – while also creating an environment that is safe and open for all students.

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Jami

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Jami

Jami holds a Bachelor of Social Science degree in Global Studies and Governance from Independent University, Bangladesh (IUB). Jami brings over five years of experience as a debate instructor, working with students across Asia (Bangladesh, Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea), the Middle East (UAE), and North Africa (Morocco). His students later went on to represent their national teams, such as Team Bangladesh, Team UAE, and Team Morocco at the World Schools Debate Championship (WSDC), the annual highest-level competition of global school debating.

Jami is currently the Head Coach of Team UAE. Previously, he coached Team Morocco; and assisted national team selections of Brazil and Vietnam. Additionally, he served on the Chief Adjudicators Panel at the WSDC 2024 (Serbia). Jami served on the Motions Committee twice of the WSDC in 2023 and 2024 (Vietnam and Serbia). In community service, he has served on Equity Officer roles at Asian major tournaments as the United Asian Debate Championship (UADC) and Asian British Parliamentary (ABP). Currently, Jami serves on the Board of Directors of the World Schools Debate Championship Limited, registered under UK company house. 

Aside from coaching debate teams, Jami has been on the Chief Adjudicator Panel for 37+ competitions, spanning Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas. He has also judged outrounds in 75+ competitions around the world, including at the ABP, European Universities Debating Championship (EUDC), and Oxford-Cambridge-LSE InterVarsity Championships. As a speaker, Jami received speaker awards in World Schools Debate Championship & spoke in outrounds at the World Universities Debate Championship. He was the first national curriculum (Bangla) school representative in the history of WSDC Team Bangladesh. 

Saurav

Saurav

Saurav

Saurav

Saurav is a graduate of the University of Nottingham Malaysia, with a background in Literature and Linguistics. Deeply committed to the power of language and persuasion, he believes that education, when done right, can unlock critical thinking and shape confident individuals, especially through early exposure to debating.

Saurav has won numerous tournaments at home and reached prestigious positions in several others across Asia, both as a debater and a judge. He is the winner of MahaSangram 2016, Tech Debates 2018, YuwaYug 2017, and was Best Speaker in each of them along with more than five other competitions. Saurav was a finalist at UT Mara Open 2019 and Monash Sustainability Debate Open 2019, and a semi-finalist at IUB Ascension 2019, AODC 2020, and BDC Digital Discourse 2020.

Saurav is one of the celebrated pioneers of Nepal’s debate culture, having trained hundreds of students nationwide, coached Team Nepal for the 2015 World Schools Debating Championships, and led national selections in 2018. His impact extends across Asia, having trained debaters in Cambodia, Malaysia, and Thailand. A seasoned adjudicator, Saurav has served on the Adjudication Core for major tournaments—including BDO Nepal (2017 & 2018), AKDC 2015, and the National Debate Fest 2016—and judged finals at international competitions like ESDC Turkey, IMU Open Malaysia, and Pre-Worlds 2018 in Dhaka. 

Beyond debate, Saurav has worked extensively as a public speaking and development trainer, serving as an executive at a prominent NGO in Nepal. He has trained hundreds and spoken at regional conferences and advocacy platforms on education and empowerment.

Saurav views education as a life-changing force that still remains unevenly implemented. He is a committed lifelong educator.

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Sreyan

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Sreyan

Sreyan is widely recognized as one of the most elite debate figures to emerge from South Asia. He attended Hobart and William Smith Colleges (HWS) in New York on a prestigious full-ride scholarship, earned via his caliber as a competitive debater. At HWS, Sreyan’s leadership and public speaking prowess culminated in him serving as the President of the HWS Debate Team and being chosen as the Commencement Speaker for the Class of 2023.

As a competitive speaker, Sreyan made history as the first Bengali debater to rank among the Top 10 Speakers at the World Schools Debating Championships (WSDC). Over his career, he has captured more than 50 team and speaker awards spanning from the World University Debating Championships (WUDC) to global institutions such as Yale, Cornell, and Oxford. His expertise is deeply respected on the global circuit; he has served as the Chief Adjudicator for NAUDC and Deputy Chief Adjudicator for ABP, widely recognized as the largest and most prestigious university debating championships in North America and Asia, respectively.

Beyond competitive success, Sreyan balances his elite debate pedigree with a deep passion for pedagogy and innovative learning design. As the Head Coach of the Bangladesh National Debate Team, he designed a rigorous training curriculum that propelled the squad to an 11th-place global finish at the World Championships. Sreyan excels at creating high-impact, modern educational environments. He built custom Learning Management Systems (LMS) from scratch, designed advanced specialized speaking programs, and pioneered the integration of AI-driven tools into the classroom to scale communication learning. These technologies are now utilized by thousands of students across Asia. At the intersection of technology and elite communication, Sreyan continues to shape the next generation of global thinkers and speakers.

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Our Achievements

Our students don’t just compete, they dominate the world stage.

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Shanghai International Debate Open (SIDO) 2026

Our students won both the Over-16 and Under-16 Championships at SIDO 2026, held from March 20-22, 2026.
Continue reading Shanghai International Debate Open (SIDO) 2026
Capstone Debate students holding medals, trophies and a banner at ASDC 2025

Asian Schools Debating Championship 2025

Capstone students won the Novice division at ASDC 2025, reached the quarterfinals and earned placements across Junior, Novice and Overall speaker tabs.
Continue reading Asian Schools Debating Championship 2025
Student delivering a speech at a lectern while other debaters take notes at tables

Beijing International Schools Debating Championship (BJISDC) 2025

Our debaters bring home one Championship title, one U16 Championship, one Grand Finalist placing, four Semifinalist finishes, three Pre-Semifinalist finishes, one U14 Semifinalist placing, and numerous top speaker awards including Overall Best Speaker and Finals Best Speaker.
Continue reading Beijing International Schools Debating Championship (BJISDC) 2025

Student Highlights

Our News

Latest Updates and Stories

TESTIMONIALS

Inspiring Voices of
Success and Perseverance

The guidance of Capstone coaches allowed me to realise my goal of debating for Team Hong Kong. Under their holistic teaching methods, I developed my fundamental debating skills and improved my ability to persevere through adversity.

The guidance of Capstone coaches allowed me to realise my goal of debating for Team Hong Kong. Under their holistic teaching methods, I developed my fundamental debating skills and improved my ability to persevere through adversity.

Capstone has played a vital role in building my passion for debating. Without their top-tier coaching, I would not have debated for Team England and now for Oxford!

Capstone has played a vital role in building my passion for debating. Without their top-tier coaching, I would not have debated for Team England and now for Oxford!

I’m so grateful to my Capstone coaches for helping me realise my passion for debate. With their support, I was able to continue debating at a university level, advancing to the Octofinals of the World University Debating Championships. 

I’m so grateful to my Capstone coaches for helping me realise my passion for debate. With their support, I was able to continue debating at a university level, advancing to the Octofinals of the World University Debating Championships. 

I can’t give Capstone enough credit for the help they’ve given me over the years. Without the coaching and community I found here, I wouldn’t have been able to debate for Team Hong Kong or earn a place as a…

I can’t give Capstone enough credit for the help they’ve given me over the years. Without the coaching and community I found here, I wouldn’t have been able to debate for Team Hong Kong or earn a place as a Top 10 WSDC speaker!

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Debate resources

Learn how World Schools debate works

Read Capstone’s guide to speaking roles, reply speeches, points of information and the current WSDC scoring standard.

Read the World Schools format guide