Members of a delegation from the University of Windsor are elated after one of their number was honoured as the best performer during a gathering of the Symposium of Ontario Chinese Professors earlier this month.

Guoqing Zhang, a professor of industrial and manufacturing systems engineering, said 16 people from Windsor were among 400 celebrants of Chinese New Year, February 4 in Toronto.

Xing Feng.

Xing Feng, a UWindsor political science grad (MA 2007), took top honours for her singing of “I Love You, China.”

The song, originally featured in 1979 film Hearts for the Motherland, is considered almost an unofficial Chinese national anthem. It requires a soaring soprano voice; Feng studied music before coming to Canada.

“Almost everyone jumped to their feet to applaud,” said earth and environmental sciences professor Jianwen Yang.

Eight universities were represented in the competition, but few can claim the distinction his colleagues are celebrating: “This is the first time Windsor sent people to perform, and we won first prize!”