Some pointers : Thevesh looks on as Tunku Dara (right) and Bhain offer their input as they go through the speech.

The Malaysian champ is all set for the big battle in London.

HIS win at The Star-English Speaking Union (ESU) Malaysia-PKT Logistics Public Speaking Competition 2013 is only the beginning as Thevesh Thevananthan will be leaving for London today to compete with champs from all over the world at the ESU International Public Speaking Competition.

Although there will be workshops for participants to further hone their skills next week in London, Thevesh recently had a training session with Jagdish Bhain, a judge from ESU Malaysia.

Chief judge and ESU Malaysia chairman Tunku Dara Tunku Tan Sri Naquiah Tuanku Ja’afar was also present to provide her feedback and tips.

“This has been the best training I’ve received,” said the 17-year-old from SMK Bukit Jambul, Penang.

The training session, which took place last week at Menara Star, allowed Thevesh to practise his speech during which he received sound advice and constructive criticism.

In accordance with the competition theme, “Ideas are Our Greatest Weapon”, Thevesh’s speech, titled “This One’s for Us”, highlighted the fact that a weapon was only useful when it was wielded.

Using Myanmar leader and Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and how she was instrumental in democratising Myanmar as an example, Thevesh’s speech highlighted that it wasn’t her pro-democracy ideas that brought about change, but how she had to act on them.

“It’s okay to be scared. But it’s not okay to let our fear cripple us,” he declared.

Both Bhain and Tunku Dara helped him to fine tune his speech, where certain words needed to be stressed to highlight a point like “this one is for us” instead of “this one’s for us” for better effect.

They reminded him to pause on certain words to throw his voice. They emphasised the importance of body language and eye contact. Bhain, at one point, even told Thevesh that he was using “too much hand”.

At the semi-finals stage of the competition, participants will only be given 15 minutes to prepare their impromptu speeches.

Thevesh’s public speaking path had begun when he was “about six or seven” with his storytelling endeavours and Tunku Dara advised him to use this skills to the fullest for the impromptu segment

Before he left Menara Star to catch his flight back to Penang, he said that he was glad to have had the training session. “They know everything there is to know. And it shows,” he said.

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