Learn Hardcore Chinese: bùguǎn yíng háishi shū, tā dōu juéde cānjiā bǐsài hěn yǒuyìsi. - No matter whether she wins or loses, she feels that taking part in the competition is very interesting.

还是 is normally used:
- in questions: 你要咖啡还是茶？(Do you want coffee or tea?)
- in “whether… or…” patterns like 不管…还是… / 无论…还是…
或者 is normally used:
- in statements: 你要咖啡或者茶都可以。(Coffee or tea is fine.)

In 不管赢还是输, we have a “whether A or B” kind of meaning, so 还是 is the natural choice.
不管赢或者输 is possible but sounds less idiomatic; 不管…还是… is the standard pairing.

3. What is the role of 都 in 她都觉得…? Do we need it?

Here 都 (dōu) does not literally mean “all”; it works with 不管… to express:

“in all cases / no matter what happens / anyway”

Pattern:

不管 A 还是 B，(subject) 都 …
“No matter A or B, (subject) still …”

So:

不管赢还是输，她都觉得…
- “Whether she wins or loses, she still feels that…”

Without 都, the sentence is still understandable:

不管赢还是输，她觉得参加比赛很有意思。

…but it sounds less natural. With 不管 / 无论, Chinese very often uses 都 (or 也) in the main clause.

4. Could we use 也 instead of 都? What’s the difference between 都 and 也 here?

Yes, you can say:

不管赢还是输，她也觉得参加比赛很有意思。

Both 都 and 也 are acceptable after 不管 / 无论. The difference:

都:
- often emphasizes “all cases / both situations”
- feels a bit more “systematic” or complete
也:
- emphasizes “even so / still”
- can sound a bit more like “even then, she still…”

In this sentence the nuance difference is small; 都 is slightly more common and neutral in this pattern.

5. Why is there no subject with 赢 and 输? Can we say 不管她赢还是她输?

The subject “she” is understood from context and appears later (她都觉得…), so it is omitted in 赢 and 输.

You can absolutely say:

不管她赢还是输，她都觉得…
or more symmetrically: 不管她赢还是她输，她都觉得…

These are correct and clear, just a bit longer.
Chinese often drops repeated, obvious subjects (especially in the first clause) to keep sentences shorter and smoother.

6. Why is the word order 她都觉得参加比赛很有意思 and not, for example, 她觉得参加比赛都很有意思?

Both orders are grammatical, but they focus slightly differently:

她都觉得参加比赛很有意思。
- 都 is before the verb 觉得, so it modifies her feeling/judgment:
- “In all cases, she feels (that) taking part is interesting.”
她觉得参加比赛都很有意思。
- 都 is before 很有意思, so it modifies “all the competitions / all times she participates”:
- More like “She thinks that whenever she participates in competitions, they are all interesting.”

In your original sentence, we’re contrasting win vs. lose, so placing 都 before 觉得 better matches the “in either outcome, she still feels…” idea.

7. Why do we need 很 before 有意思? Can we say 参加比赛有意思?

In Chinese, adjectives (and some adjective-like expressions such as 有意思) usually need a degree adverb like 很 when used as predicates.

参加比赛很有意思。
- Literally: “Participating in competitions is very interesting.”
- In everyday Chinese, 很 here often doesn’t strongly mean “very”; it just makes the sentence sound natural.

If you say:

参加比赛有意思。

it can sound:

a bit abrupt, or
like you’re making a contrast (“It is interesting (contrary to what someone said)”).

So 很 is often just a “link” before adjectives to make the sentence flow naturally, unless there’s another degree adverb (非常, 特别, 有点儿, etc.).

8. What’s the difference between 觉得 and 认为? Why use 觉得 here?

Both mean roughly “to think / to feel,” but usage differs:

觉得 (juéde):
- more subjective / personal feeling
- used for impressions, opinions, sensations
- very common in everyday speech
- e.g. 我觉得今天有点冷。I feel it’s a bit cold today.
认为 (rènwéi):
- more formal / reasoned judgment
- used in writing, discussions, analysis
- e.g. 我认为这个办法不太现实。I consider this method not very realistic.

Here, she is expressing a personal feeling about participating in competitions being interesting, so 觉得 is the natural, colloquial choice.

9. Is there any tense in this sentence? How do we know whether it means “whenever she wins or loses” vs. “this time when she wins or loses”?

Chinese does not mark tense the same way English does. This sentence is aspect-neutral and time-neutral:

It can describe:
- a general truth / habit: “Whenever she wins or loses, she finds it interesting to participate.”
- a specific situation: “Whether she wins or loses (in this competition), she finds participating interesting.”

Context decides:

If the conversation is about her character or life in general, it’s habitual.
If it’s about a specific competition, it’s about that event.

To make it clearly one-time, you could add context words:

这次不管赢还是输，她都觉得参加比赛很有意思。
- “This time, whether she wins or loses…”

10. Why is there no 了 in 参加比赛很有意思? Would 参加比赛很有意思了 make sense?

了 marks completed actions or a change of state. Here:

参加比赛很有意思。
- is making a general statement about how she feels (no emphasis on change or completion).

If you say:

参加比赛很有意思了。

it suggests:

a change compared to before:
- “Participating in competitions has become interesting (it wasn’t interesting before).”

So in your sentence, since we’re stating her attitude (not a change), there is no need for 了.

11. Can we move 不管赢还是输 to the middle of the sentence?

Yes, you can change word order slightly:

她不管赢还是输，都觉得参加比赛很有意思。

This is also natural and common. Patterns:

Subordinate clause first:
- 不管赢还是输，她都觉得…
Main clause first:
- 她不管赢还是输，都觉得…

Both mean the same. Putting 不管… first emphasizes the condition; putting 她 first foregrounds the person and then states her attitude “no matter whether she wins or loses.”

12. How is 不管 pronounced with tones? Does tone sandhi change it?

The basic tones:

不 (bù) – 4th tone
管 (guǎn) – 3rd tone

Tone sandhi rule for 不:

不 changes from 4th tone to 2nd tone before another 4th-tone syllable.
Example: 不对 → bú对

Since 管 is 3rd tone, 不 keeps its original 4th tone:

不管 → bùguǎn

So the pronunciation stays: bùguǎn (4–3).