Romanian teacher in Brașov crowned fastest reader in the world

Teodora Voinescu, a Romanian language teacher at the "Grigore Moisil" National College of Informatics in Brașov, was crowned the world’s fastest reader at the 33rd edition of the World Speed Reading Championship in Istanbul, Turkey.

Voinescu competed against hundreds of contestants, especially from Asia but also from Europe, passionate about mind sports, chess, and with high IQs. She became the champion after reading over 130 pages in 30 minutes. Not only that, but she had to prove she understood what she read, as she had to answer specific questions about the text.

“The competition itself involves reading a book within a certain timeframe—a book unpublished and unknown until that moment. You are asked 20 content questions to which you must answer in detail, meaning you must show that you understood what you read. I raised my hand, said I finished reading, handed in the paper, answered the questions, and then left. Everything wrapped up in about 40 minutes,” Teodora Voinescu said, cited by Brasov.net.

The teacher says she sometimes reads two books a day. She recalls starting to read fluently at the age of three. The performance achieved in Turkey has opened other doors for her, she added.

“The people there said they wanted to collaborate, for me to become a professional coach, to work with universities and companies abroad, and to develop manuals together with them. I’ve been invited to the next edition in Vietnam next year. For me, it’s extraordinary,” Voinescu said.

Amazingly, Voinescu did not train for the competition. “I don’t have a technique or something specific. I didn’t go in with a plan, like I have to do things a certain way. I simply read as I do at home,” the teacher said.

(Photo source: Sebastian Czapnik | Dreamstime.com)