International Mathematical Olympiad

The first International Mathematical Olympiad was held in Romania in 1959. India won five bronze medals and an honourable mention at the last Olympiad held at Ljubljana in Slovenia in July, 2006.The aims of the International Mathematical Olympiad are: “to discover, encourage and challenge mathematically gifted young people in all countries; to foster friendly relations between mathematicians of all countries; to create opportunities for the exchange of information on school syllabi and practice throughout the world”. The next Olympiad will be held at Hanoi in Vietnam in July this year. Roughly 400 participants from over 70 countries vie for the gold, silver and bronze medals at the Olympiad. The competition is spread over two days. Each test consists of three questions that have to be answered in four-and-a-half hours.The mechanics of this three-tier contest in India are as follows:The A-level tests are conducted at the regional level in major cities during September and October. Forty to fifty participants are selected here for the B-level national examination that is generally held on the third Sunday of January each year. The top five to six winners are then provided special coaching for a month at the Honoi.