Portrait of 16 year old math prodigy
This year, the International Mathematical Olympiad welcomed 609 contestants from 108 countries. The event was held in Bath, England, from July 11 to 22. In the end, the Chinese team ranked second with a total score of 190 points, 2 points behind the US team.
Despite the regret that China did not lead the overall rankings, the Chinese press is very proud of math prodigy Shi Haojia. This year, Shi was the only contestant to achieve a perfect score of 42/42. Last year, he also achieved a perfect score in this competition.
Shi Haojia is the only contestant to achieve a perfect score at the 2024 International Mathematics Olympiad (Photo: SCMP).
The 16-year-old student won the second gold medal for the Chinese delegation. Shi Haojia is the fourth contestant from the Chinese delegation to achieve this achievement, since China sent a delegation to compete in the International Mathematical Olympiad for the first time in 1985.
Shi is studying at Hailiang Middle School in Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province. At school, Shi follows a special education program designed by a group of math teachers at the school specifically for the gifted student. This special training program aims to help Shi develop his math skills to the best of his ability.
Teacher Zhang Xiaoming - who directly taught math to Shi and is also the principal of the high school - commented that Shi is a rare math prodigy.
The most special thing about Shi is that her motivation to learn math comes from her pure love for math. She doesn't care too much about titles or achievements, she just focuses on learning math because of her innocent love.
Shi's concentration is considered an important factor that helps her develop her abilities well. At school, Shi often eats lunch later than her friends because she is so focused on solving math problems that she forgets to be hungry. There are times when she eagerly goes to her teacher's house to discuss math problems until 11pm and seems to forget about the time.
Sharing about his math studies, Shi said: "At school, I received systematic specialized education. This helped me develop my abilities effectively and explore the world of mathematics more freely. Mathematics is a world that I especially love."
Shi Haojia's math ability has been known since he was in primary school (Photo: SCMP).
Shi was born in the countryside of Henan Province. His mathematical ability was known since he was in elementary school. At that time, Shi started teaching mathematics to his older sister who was in middle school.
At the age of 10, Shi won a gold medal in the national primary school math competition. Since the 5th grade, Shi has received special education to maximize his potential in learning. At this time, Shi moved to Shaoxing City to study for better learning conditions.
In 2021, Shi was one of the young prodigies selected to be included in the Qiu Chengtong Mathematics Talent Training Program conducted by Tsinghua University. The goal of this program is to provide educational conditions that match the innate abilities of prodigies from high school to doctoral training.
After being selected for the special training program, Shi was invited to meet in person by the famous Chinese-American mathematician Qiu Chengtong (75 years old). This shows that Shi was recognized by the mathematician as a special prodigy.
The title "math prodigy" has been attached to Shi Haojia for many years, but he doesn't care much about this title. Shi's teachers insist that he only focuses on his special love for math. The teachers who directly taught Shi also commented that he is a teenager with a calm and composed personality, rarely gets angry and is always patient in everything.
Experts comment on the results of the Chinese delegation at the International Mathematical Olympiad
The title of child prodigy has been associated with Shi Haojia for many years now. He has participated in many competitions for excellent math students at home and abroad (Photo: SCMP).
The first International Mathematical Olympiad was held in Romania in 1959 with only 7 countries sending delegations. To date, the competition has expanded in scale and stature, attracting more than 100 countries and territories sending delegations. Each delegation has a maximum of 6 high school students participating in the competition.
In nearly four decades of participating in the International Mathematical Olympiad, China has topped the overall score 24 times. The Chinese team's second place in this year's competition has attracted much attention and comments from domestic experts.
Robotics expert Geng Tao said that China's loss of the top spot was only a temporary phenomenon. China has many young mathematical talents that were discovered early.
Parents in China also place great importance on their children's education. Children with innate abilities are always given every opportunity by their families and schools to develop. Families, schools and students all take international math competitions very seriously. For these reasons, expert Geng Tao believes that the Chinese team will soon have an impressive breakthrough in their achievements.
Famous Chinese-American mathematician Qiu Chengtung (Photo: SCMP).
In the face of discussions about the Chinese delegation's ranking, mathematician Qiu Chengtong spoke frankly about the risk of racing for achievements without bringing about practical results.
Mr. Khau commented that the achievements of the Chinese delegation at the International Mathematical Olympiad are always among the top, however, the actual results from China's mathematical research activities cannot surpass the US in the near future.
Mathematician Qiu Chengtong taught at Harvard University (USA) for many years. In 2022, he left the US and moved to teach at Tsinghua University (China). Qiu believes that rankings in competitions are only one factor, while long-term results in research activities say a lot.
Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giao-duc/thi-sinh-duy-nhat-dat-diem-tuyet-doi-tai-olympic-toan-hoc-quoc-te-2024-20240729125406439.htm
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