Nine teams from translation programs across Canada gathered at the Université du Québec in Trois-Rivières from March 11 to 14 for the 11th Translation Games. The two-day competition, held every spring in a different university, involves a series of individual and group challenges.
Students from York University’s Glendon campus began preparing for the games in the fall with the help of several faculty members and this training paid off with Glendon taking a number of major awards.
Working from English to French and from French to English, teams translate a variety of technical and literary texts, including songs, comic trips, advertisements and film subtitles. Faculty members from all participating universities judge the translations in a double-blind process.
A number market partners, including translation firms, publishers and software developers, some of whom are long-time sponsors of the games, also participate in the event.
“The games are a are a great opportunity for students to network, meet prospective employers, and measure their skills against those of their peers from other translation programs across Canada,” said faculty member Sylvie Clamageran, who accompanied the Glendon team for the third time.
Team members Mélanie Blain, Alicia Chiasson, Erika Desjardins, Maria Kogan, Charles-Étienne Lacroix, and Amanda Milroy were joined by volunteer Isabelle Lepage and team alumnae Stéphanie Audet-Brazeau and Rebecca Kinos-Varo.
The Glendon team began preparing for the games in the fall with the help of several faculty members and this training paid off. Glendon took first prize for their team translation of a song into French. Lacroix place third for his translation of a literary text into French and Kogan placed fourth for her literary translation into English.
“This was Glendon’s best performance yet,” said School of Translation Chair Lyse Hébert, who also joined the team in Trois-Rivières. “Félicitations! We congratulate the team members and look forward to supporting next year’s team.”
Glendon Principal Donald Ipperciel was thrilled to learn of Glendon’s success at the Translation Games. “We are extremely proud of our students,” he said. “They have represented Glendon and York well. Bravo aux étudiants!”