TEHRAN – Iranian students won a silver medal and three bronze medals at the first International Nuclear Science Olympiad (ISNO), which was held from August 1 to 6 at the New Clark City in the Philippines.

Seyed Abolfazl Mahdaei won a silver medal, and Seyed Mohammad Sajadiyan, Shayan Rezazadeh, and Ayda Bina won bronze medals, IRNA reported.

The attendees comprised a mix of junior and senior high school students aged 20 years and below.

Pioneering participants included 14 countries of 55 contenders with 27 team leaders and 14 observers.

The contestants came as teams representing their respective countries, but they competed as individuals. Further, they were ranked according to the points they obtained in the two exams.

They competed in a grueling two-day examination of skills and knowledge in nuclear science.

The competition provided a platform for international nuclear education networks to showcase their programs to the first INSO participants and guests thereby creating potential long-term networks among international and national scientific and trade/business organizations.

The aim of INSO is to increase awareness of the peaceful applications of Nuclear Science and Technology. Alongside.

It also intends to popularize knowledge and understanding of nuclear science and technology (NST) to improve the nuclear scientific approach towards its uses and applications.

Enhancing the interest in NST among secondary school students, improving the teaching of NST at the secondary school level, and stimulating activities for interested students by way of independent and creative solutions for NST problems.

Moreover, it aims to promote international contacts and facilitate cordial relations, motivate participants to pursue NST professions and stimulate the founding and organization of National Nuclear Science Olympiads in the participating states.

Intl. achievements

The outstanding achievements of Iranian students in international Olympiads have placed the country among the top five nations in the world.

“The educational system of other countries is excellent, yet Iran is among the top 5 countries in the world in the international Olympiads, YJC quoted Elham Yavari, the head of the National Organization for the Development of Brilliant Talents (SAMPAD), as saying.

Yavari pointed to a reform-based plan approved by Iran’s Ministry of Education in 2011 that defined a 20-year prospect for the elevation of educational standards and improvement of the educational system across the country.

Iran grabbed one gold medal and three silver medals at the 56th International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) which was held in Saudi Arabia from July 22 to 30.

The IChO 2024 was held under the slogan ‘Building Connections Together’.

A total of 333 talented men and women from 90 countries participated in the competitions of the 56th edition of the IChO, under the supervision of 260 international specialists in the field of chemistry, at King Saud University in Riyadh. 

Ramtin Moradi Mazhar succeeded in winning a gold medal, while Alborz Rezaei, Amirkia Salimi, and Mohammad-Yasin Salehi Marzijarani secured silvers.

During the competitions, the students took two main exams that were translated into more than 50 languages, one of which was practical, laboratory, and the other theoretical, written, in a highly competitive environment.

Five Iranian students who attended the 54th International Physics Olympiad managed to win a gold medal and four silver medals, improving the country’s ranking from 17th in 2023 to fourth this year.

The 54th edition of the IPhO commenced on July 22 in the city of Isfahan and concluded on July 28.

A total of 200 elite students from 47 countries including Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Kuwait, Romania, Croatia, Bulgaria, Mexico, Turkey, and some other countries participated in the nine-day event, IRNA reported.

Moreover, Oman and Morocco participated in the competition as observers to become familiar with the Olympiad.

China, Russia, and Romania ranked first to third respectively.

According to Mahmoud Bahmanabadi, the chairman of the IPhO 2024 Organizing Committee, 17 percent of participants grabbed silver medals, and 25 percent of them won Bronze medals.

“Science diplomacy is one of the country's strategic policies. Holding this competition will contribute to the development of science diplomacy since it serves as a platform to meet future physicists and promote constructive interaction in physics and other science and technology fields,” IRNA quoted Bahmanabadi as saying. 

The history of the IPhO dates back to 1967, when the first edition was held in Warsaw Poland with the participation of only five countries.

Attending the 40th Annual Science Olympiad Tournament at Michigan State University, Iranian students managed to win a bronze medal and two diplomas of honor.

A total of 114 teams from 84 countries presenting 310 scientific projects participated in the competition, Mehr news agency reported.

The competition is held annually for students aged 12 – 18 from June 1 to 15.

Supported by Oxford University, the competition was held in two stages in the fields of technical engineering, computer science, energy, biological science, social science, art, and robotics.

In the first stage, after evaluating the student’s projects, 4 Iranian teams consisting of Sina Moqaddam-Nodehi, Paniz Karimi, Ilya Nosrat-Panah, Mahan Qadimi, and Mohammad-Sam Nemati-Moein were selected to advance to the second stage.

Moqaddam-Nodehi won the bronze medal, while Mahan Qadimi and Mohammad-Sam Nemati-Moein received diplomas of honor.

Also, Karimi and Nosrat-Panah received a certificate for taking part in the competition.

These students have also succeeded in becoming members of the World Federation of Inventors. This summer, they will participate in the world competition in Geneva, Switzerland, as selected Iranian inventors.

Iranian schoolchildren ranked second and grabbed six gold medals in the Second Open World Astronomy Olympiad (OWAO).

Russia hosted the tournament at the Sirius Educational Center from November 14 to 22, 2023, IRNA reported. The participants attended the event both in person and remotely.

Iran grabbed one gold medal and three silver medals at the 35th International Olympiad in Informatics, ranking seventh in the world among 91 countries.

The IOI 2023 was held in Szeged, Hungary, from August 28th to September 4th.

The International Olympiad in Informatics is an annual international informatics competition for high school students from various invited countries, accompanied by social and cultural programs.

It is one of the several international science Olympiads held annually around the world. Exceptional high school students from various countries compete in the prestigious algorithmic competition to sharpen their informatics skills—such as problem analysis, design of algorithms and data structures, programming, and testing.

This year, the Iranian team won five medals, ranking third in the 16th International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics, which was held on August 10-20 in Chorzow, Poland.

IOAA is an annual event for students who perform very well academically around the world. Established in Thailand in the year 2006, it was an initiative by five countries including Thailand, Indonesia, Iran, China, and Poland.

Also, Iranian students took six medals, ranking 11th at the 64th International Mathematical Olympiad which was held in Japan on July 2-13, 2023.

IMO is the World Championship Mathematics Competition for high school students, which is held each year in a different country.

MT/MG