The Australasian Intervarsity Debating Championships (known colloquially as "Australs") is an annual debating tournament for teams from universities in the Australasian region. It is one of the world's largest debating tournaments, second only in size to the World Universities Debating Championship (WUDC), the European Universities Debating Championships (EUDC) and one of the largest annual student events in the world. Australs follows the Australia-Asian Debating format (three speakers plus replies), rather than the British Parliamentary Style used at WUDC. It is held every year in early-July under the auspices of the Australasian Intervarsity Debating Association (AIDA). The host university is selected a year before at a meeting of the Council of the Australasian Intervarsity Debating Association.
The best speaker of the tournament is awarded the "Martin Sorensen Trophy", and the best speaker of the Grand Final is awarded the "Jock Fanselow Cup".
The most recent edition of Australs was held by EduDrift in partnership with Multimedia Nusantara University. The tournament was hosted in Jakarta, Indonesia. The current champions are Oliver Hervir, Sophie Shead and Udai Kamath of the University of Sydney Union.
Since the inaugural tournament at the University of Sydney in 1975, Australs has continually expanded the scope of its participants, now attracting around 300 competitors each year from around the Asia-Pacific region. Australs was significantly modernised in 1993 when a new constitution was introduced by then AIDA President. The Constitution provided for standard rules of debate and adjudication, and provided for extended voting rights for non-Australian and New Zealand participants. Currently teams come from Australia, Bangladesh, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Russia and the Philippines.
Prior to the inception of the AIDA in 1990, there were occasional problems with the administration and rule-format for Australs, as the running of the tournament was left to the host university, with a meeting of all Universities at the end of the competition. There was little ongoing supervision of the hosts, and adjudication standards varied widely.
In 1992 an affirmative action requirement was introduced to ensure that at least one third of each University's contingent must be female, unless the circumstances could be justified. This was prompted by the poor representation of female debaters at Australs. In 1990 only 8% of all speakers eligible to make the finals at Australasian championships were female, although women were over-represented as adjudicators. In 1991, the year before the introduction of the affirmative action requirement, the first women's meeting was held to discuss ways to combat the problem. At that time the participation rate had risen to 21%, with the introduction of a number of universities as first-time participants. Few women were represented in the finals, however. The intention behind the introduction of the rule was that it would encourage universities to promote debating to a large number of potential members and train their debaters before they attended Australs. It was also thought that this would encourage a greater diversity of speaking styles, rather than what was seen as a very aggressive style by a number of very successful and talented Australian male debaters, and this would benefit all debaters and universities.
| Year | Champions | Runners-up | Hosts | |
| 2024 | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of Sydney (Australia) | Multimedia Nusantara University (Indonesia) | |
| 2023 | University of Sydney (Australia) | National University of Singapore (Singapore) | Chulalongkorn University (Thailand) | |
| 2022 [1] | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of the Philippines Diliman (Philippines) | Western Sydney University (Australia) | |
| 2021 [2] | Ateneo de Manila University (Philippines) | Macquarie University (Australia) | Held online by National Speech and Debate Association (Nepal) and Debate Network Nepal due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |
| 2020 | Australian National University (Australia) | University of Sydney (Australia) | Held online by Monash University (Australia) due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |
| 2019 | University of Melbourne (Australia) | Australian National University (Australia) | National University of Singapore (Singapore) | |
| 2018 | Macquarie University (Australia) | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of Malaya (Malaysia) | |
| 2017 | Australian National University (Australia) | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of Queensland Debating Society (Australia) | |
| 2016 | International Islamic University Malaysia (Malaysia) | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of Western Australia (Australia) | |
| 2015 | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of Auckland (New Zealand) | SolBridge International School of Business (South Korea) | |
| 2014 | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of Otago (New Zealand) | |
| 2013 | University of Sydney (Australia) | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | Universiti Teknologi MARA (Malaysia) | |
| 2012 | Monash University (Australia) | Monash University (Australia) | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | |
| 2011 | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | National University of Singapore (Singapore) | Chung-Ang University (South Korea) | |
| 2010 | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | University of Auckland (New Zealand) | University of Auckland (New Zealand) | |
| 2009 | Monash University (Australia) | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 2008 | University of Sydney (Australia) | Monash University (Australia) | Ateneo de Manila University (Philippines) | |
| 2007 | University of Queensland Debating Society (Australia) | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | Universiti Teknologi Mara (Malaysia) | |
| 2006 | Monash University (Australia) | University of Melbourne (Australia) | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | |
| 2005 | University of Sydney (Australia) | Ateneo de Manila University (Philippines) | University of Queensland Debating Society (Australia) | |
| 2004 | Monash University (Australia) | Multimedia University (Malaysia) | University of Technology, Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2003 | University of Sydney (Australia) | Monash University (Australia) | Multimedia University (Malaysia) | |
| 2002 | University of Melbourne (Australia) | Australian National University (Australia) | University of Melbourne (Australia) | |
| 2001 | Monash University (Australia) | University of Melbourne (Australia) | Nanyang Technological University (Singapore) | |
| 2000 | Monash University (Australia) | University of Sydney (Australia) | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 1999 | University of Sydney (Australia) | Monash University (Australia) | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | |
| 1998 | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 1997 | University of Sydney (Australia) | Monash University (Australia) | De La Salle University-Manila (Philippines) | |
| 1996 | Monash University (Australia) | University of Sydney (Australia) | Australian National University (Australia) | |
| 1995 | University of Sydney (Australia) | Monash University (Australia) | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 1994 | Macquarie University (Australia) | University of Technology, Sydney (Australia) | University of Tasmania (Australia) | |
| 1993 | Monash University (Australia) | University of Melbourne (Australia) | International Islamic University (Malaysia) | |
| 1992 | Monash University (Australia) | University of Sydney (Australia) | ||
| 1991 | Australian National University (Australia) | Monash University (Australia) | University of Melbourne (Australia) | |
| 1990 | University of Sydney (Australia) | Australian National University (Australia) | University of Adelaide (Australia) | |
| 1989 | Australian National University (Australia) | Australian National University (Australia) | ||
| 1988 | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of Melbourne (Australia) | National University of Singapore (Singapore) | |
| 1987 | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of Otago (New Zealand) | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | |
| 1986 | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of Melbourne (Australia) | University of Melbourne (Australia) | |
| 1985 | University of Sydney (Australia) | University of Otago (New Zealand) | University of Auckland (New Zealand) | |
| 1984 | University of New South Wales (Australia) | University of Adelaide (Australia) | ||
| 1983 | University of Adelaide (Australia) | University of Sydney (Australia) | ||
| 1982 | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | ||
| 1981 | University of Sydney (Australia) | Monash University (Australia) | ||
| 1980 | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | University of Canterbury (New Zealand) | ||
| 1979 | University of Sydney (Australia) | |||
| 1978 | University of Sydney (Australia) | |||
| 1977 | ||||
| 1976 | University of Melbourne (Australia) | |||
| 1975 | University of Sydney (Australia) | |||
The 'Martin Sorensen Trophy' is awarded to the best speaker of the tournament.
A prize recognising the tournament's best speaker was first awarded in 1989, however in 1994, it was renamed the Martin Sorensen Trophy in honour of the outstanding Monash University debater who died in July 1993 – only days after winning the award for the second time in a row.
Sorensen was considered to be the finest debater of his generation. In addition to being awarded the Best Speaker prize twice, he won the tournament twice, was a runner-up once, and was selected in the Australian Test team 3 years in a row. After his death, it was decided that the Best Speaker award would be named in Sorensen's honour to preserve his memory, and it is common for Australs debaters to be educated about his legacy even now, 20 years after his death.[3]
The Trophy is awarded to the debater with the highest total sum of speaker scores in the preliminary rounds of competition. It is considered to be the most prestigious individual award in Australasian debating.
| Year | Name | University | |
| 2024 | Charlie Ryan | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2023 | Udai Kamath | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2022 | Udai Kamath Matthew Toomey David Africa | Macquarie University (Australia) University of Sydney (Australia) Ateneo De Manila University (Philippines) | |
| 2021 | Oliver Cummins | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2020 | Sourodip Paul Ploopy | Australian National University (Australia) Taylors University (Malaysia) | |
| 2019 | Connor O'Brien | University of Melbourne (Australia) | |
| 2018 | Imogen Harper | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2017 | Imogen Harper Dominic Guinane | University of Sydney (Australia) Australian National University (Australia) | |
| 2016 | Emma Johnstone | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2015 | Tyrone Connell | University of Melbourne (Australia) | |
| 2014 | Asher Emanuel | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | |
| 2013 | Daniel Swain | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2012 | Chris Bisset | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 2010 | Victor Finkel[4] | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 2009 | Amit Golder | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 2008 | Naomi Oreb | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2007 | Sayeqa Islam | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | |
| 2006 | Elizabeth Sheargold[5] | University of Melbourne (Australia) | |
| 2005 | Ivan Ah Sam | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2004 | Mathew Kenneally | Australian National University (Australia) | |
| 2003 | Tim Sonnreich[6] | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 2002 | Tim Sonnreich | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 2001 | Steve Bell | University of Melbourne (Australia) | |
| 2000 | Kim Little | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 1999 | Dan Celm[7] | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 1998 | Praba Ganesan | De La Salle University-Manila (Philippines) | |
| 1996 | Lizzie Knight Phillip Senior | Monash University (Australia) University of Western Australia (Australia) | |
| 1995 | Christian Porter Matthew Richardson | University of Western Australia (Australia) University of New South Wales (Australia) | |
| 1994 | Tony Burke | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 1993 | Martin Sorensen | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 1992 | Martin Sorensen | Monash University (Australia) | |
| 1991 | Julian Beckedahl Rufus Black | Monash University (Australia) University of Melbourne (Australia) | |
| 1990 | Camilla Newcombe | Australian National University (Australia) | |
| 1989 | Richard Douglas | Australian National University (Australia) |
The best speaker in the Grand Final is awarded the 'Jock Fanselow Cup.'
Jock Fanselow was a debating legend in New Zealand and Australasia. Representing Victoria University, he won Australs in 1980, and 1982 – the first person to win Australs twice. He was best speaker in the Grand Final of both years. Unfortunately, ill health plagued Jock since birth and a suppressed immune system saw him contract a virus which led to his death in January 2006 at the age of 48. Jock's debating teammates, friends, and family donated a cup in his name and it was first presented at Australs 2006, held at Jock's home university, Victoria University of Wellington.
| Year | Name | University |
| 2024 | Sophie Shead | University of Sydney (Australia) |
| 2023 | Charlie Ryan | University of Sydney (Australia) |
| 2022 | Sam Trotter | University of Sydney (Australia) |
| 2021 | Toby Leung | Ateneo de Manila University (Philippines) |
| 2020 | Amrit Agastia | Australian National University (Australia) |
| 2019 | Connor O'Brien | University of Melbourne (Australia) |
| 2018 | Georgia Chahoud | Macquarie University (Australia) |
| 2017 | Callum Dargavel | Australian National University (Australia) |
| 2016 | Ameera Natasha Moore | International Islamic University (Malaysia) |
| 2015 | Evie Woodforde | University of Sydney (Australia) |
| 2014 | Nicholas Cross | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) |
| 2013 | Daniel Swain | University of Sydney (Australia) |
| 2012 | Kiran Iyer | Monash University (Australia) |
| 2011 | Udayan Mukherjee | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) |
| 2010 | Stephen Whittington | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) |
| 2009 | Amit Golder | Monash University (Australia) |
| 2008 | Naomi Oreb | University of Sydney (Australia) |
| 2007 | Sayeqa Islam | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) |
| 2006 | Roland Dillon | Monash University (Australia) |
The best ESL speaker of the tournament is awarded the 'Boby Andika Ruitang Memorial Trophy'.
The trophy was introduced after Boby's passing in 2021 to commemorate their exceptional contribution to debate in Asia and support of ESL speakers in global debating.
| Year | Name | University | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Annika Wang | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2023 | AhsanKuhan Karttikeyn | University of Malaya (Malaysia) | |
| 2022 | Bea Legaspi | University of the Philippines Diliman (Philippines) | |
| 2021 | Sajid Khandaker | BRAC University (Bangladesh) | |
| 2020 | PloopySourodip Paul | Taylor's University (Malaysia)Australian National University (Australia) | |
| 2019 | Sajid Khandaker | ||
| 2018 | |||
| 2017 | Syarif Fakhri | International Islamic University Malaysia (Malaysia) | |
| 2016 | Mubarret Wassey | International Islamic University Malaysia (Malaysia) | |
| 2015 | |||
| 2014 | |||
| 2013 | |||
| 2012 | |||
| 2011 | |||
| 2010 | |||
| 2009 | Tirza Reinata | University of Indonesia (Indonesia) | |
| 2008 | |||
| 2007 | Astrid Kusumawardhani | University of Indonesia (Indonesia) |
| Year | Name | University | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Annika Wang | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2023 | Sunghyun Park | National University of Seoul (South Korea) | |
| 2022 | Brian Hose Antonio Hambur | Universitas Gadjah Mada (Indonesia) | |
| 2021 | Kanan Ishizaka | University of Tokyo (Japan) | |
| 2020 | Atsushi Sumida | Keio University (Japan) | |
| 2019 | Kanan Ishizaka | University of Tokyo (Japan) | |
| 2018 | |||
| 2017 | Derril Pramana Tungka | University of Indonesia (Indonesia) |
| Year | Best reply speaker | University | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Sophie Shead | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2023 | Daniel Yim | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2022 | David Africa | Ateneo de Manila University (Philippines) | |
| 2021 | Umbar Sandhu | University of Auckland (New Zealand) | |
| 2020 | Amrit Agastia Ignacio Villareal | Australian National University (Australia)Ateneo de Manila University (Philippines) | |
| 2019 | Kevin Lee | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2018 | James Stratton | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2017 | James Stratton | University of Sydney (Australia | |
| 2016 | Emma Johnstone | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2015 | Edward Miller | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2014 | Asher Emanuel | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | |
| 2013 | Asher Emanuel | Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) | |
| 2012 | Elle Jones[8] | University of Sydney (Australia) | |
| 2011 | Elle Jones | University of Sydney (Australia) |