USA Team Places Third, Shen Achieves Third-Best Score at 53rd International Math Olympiad
| July 17, 2012 |
Results are in for the 53rd International Mathematical Olympiad, which took place in Mar del Plata, Argentina. Team USA placed third overall with teammate Bobby Shen (Dulles High School in Sugar Land, Texas) earning the third-best score among all individuals competing in the contest.
The International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) is a six-problem, 42-point math competition held over two days. More than 90 nations compete in this annual event, which is the oldest of the International Science Olympiads. Questions cover a wide range of mathematics. Past IMO questions can be found here.
This year, 548 students participated. Contestants with a score of at least 28 points received a gold medal. Silver medals were awarded to those garnering 21-27 points, and contestants with a score of 14-20 points were awarded a bronze medal. Singapore’s Jeck Lim was the only contestant to achieve a perfect score of 42.
The team from the Republic of Korea placed first with a total score of 209, followed by the team from People's Republic of China with a score of 195. Team USA placed third with a score of 194. Individual and country results are available here.
Team USA individual scores (in alphabetical order):
Xiaoyu He (Acton-Boxborough Regional High School, Acton, MA) won a silver medal with 27 points.
Ravi Jagadeesan (Phillips Exeter Academy, Exeter, NH) won a gold medal with 28 points.
Mitchell Lee (homeschooled in Oakton, VA) won a gold medal with 29 points.
Bobby Shen (Dulles High School in Sugar Land, Texas) won a gold medal with 39 points.
Thomas Swayze (Canyon Crest Academy, San Diego, CA) won a gold medal with 35 points.
David Yang (Phillips Exeter Academy, Exeter, NH) won a gold medal with 36 points.
Zuming Feng (Phillips Exeter Academy) served as team leader with Loh Po-Shen (Carnegie Mellon University) as the deputy leader.
"It was a very difficult IMO this year," said Steven Dunbar, Director of MAA's American Mathematics Competitions. "Problems 3 and 6 were especially difficult, but USA did very well on 3 with some interesting solutions! Congratulations to all six students, and to Zuming and Po-Shen for very hard work on their behalf."
Watch a slideshow of Team USA photos at IMO 2012. Photos courtesy of the IMO 2012 Official Facebook Page.
Photos by Tomás Larrinaga and Luzila Bucari, Fundacion Olimiapiada Matematica Argentina (FOMA).
About AMC
The mission of the MAA's American Mathematics Competitions is to increase interest in mathematics and to develop problem solving through a fun competition. Teachers and schools benefit from the chance to challenge students with interesting mathematical questions that are aligned with curriculum standards at all levels of difficulty. In addition, students gain the opportunity to learn and achieve through competition with students in their school and around the world.
Thanks to Our Sponsors
The MAA would like to thank the organizations that sponsor the USAMO and MOSP programs, including: Akamai Foundation, DE Shaw & Co., Art of Problem Solving, Robert Balles, Math for America, Academy of Applied Science, American Mathematical Society, Awesome Math, Jane Street, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, American Statistical Association, National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges, Casualty Actuarial Society, Conference Board of the Mathematical Sciences, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, Mu Alpha Theta, Pi Mu Epsilon.
Related Links
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China Girls Math Olympiad
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