The Plum versus Bamboo Tournament（梅竹賽） is a sport competition used to promote friendship between NCTU（國立交通大學） and National Tsing Hua University（國立清華大學）, a neighboring university with a similar background of excellence in national science and engineering. The competition is comparable to the Oxford and Cambridge boat race. The two school have held the event since March of 1969. The Tournament shows the unending camaraderie and cooperation between the two schools.
Why is it called Plum versus Bamboo Tournament? The word “Plum” refers to Tsing Hua University, taken from the name of one of their presidents Yi-Chi Mei, whose name contain the Chinese word “Mei” for plum. The plum also represents independence and purity. The word “Bamboo”, on the other hand, refers to our University, taken from our president Hung-Hsun Ling’s given name “Chu-Ming”. The word “Chu” means bamboo, symbolizing gentlemanly honor, and the magnificence of a great nation. The name of the tournament therefore commemorates the great contributions these presidents made to the two universities.
