15/07/2022

In an unprecedented result, Brazil wins two gold medals at the IMO.

Equipe brasileira na IMO 2022 | Foto: OBM

Brazil achieved a historic result at the 63rd International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO), the largest student-level mathematics competition. For the first time, the national team won two gold medals in the same edition of the Olympiad. The country also won a silver medal, two bronze medals and an honorable mention. The results of the IMO, held this year in Oslo, Norway, were announced this Thursday (14).

Students Olavo Paschoal Longo, from São Paulo (SP), and Marcelo Machado Lage, from Belo Horizonte (MG), won the team's two gold medals. Rodrigo Salgado Domingos Porto, from Rio de Janeiro (RJ), took the silver. Bronze medals were won by Eduardo Henrique Rodrigues do Nascimento, from Goiânia (GO), and Gabriel Cruz Vitale Torkomian, from São Paulo (SP). An honorable mention went to João Pedro Ramos Viana Costa, from Fortaleza (CE).

The team was led by Professor Régis Prado Barbosa and vice-led by Rafael Kazuhiro Miyazaki. Barbosa commented that the result reflects solid training carried out with the young mathematical talents. “We are very happy with the performance, because winning two gold medals in the same year signifies a change in level. This shows that our preparation has borne fruit. The goal is to fly ever higher,” he said.

IMPA's Director-General, Marcelo Viana, also celebrated the result. "Our representatives at the IMO 2022 and the Brazilian Mathematical Olympiad (OBM), which promotes Brazil's participation, deserve congratulations for this excellent result, which demonstrates the strength of mathematical talent among our young people!", commented Viana.

The students who represented Brazil were selected from the winners of the 43rd Brazilian Mathematics Olympiad (OBM) . Edmilson Luis Rodrigues Motta, academic coordinator of the OBM, says that the result made the team very happy. “Each year, the team finishes with an even more solid foundation. To improve our results, we have important support, including from IMPA and the Brazilian Mathematics Olympiad for Public Schools (OBMEP), which allows us to keep Brazilian mathematics prominent on a global level,” he stated.

The Olympiad has been held since 1959 and awards young high school students from over 100 countries. Brazilian teams have historically won a total of 152 medals, including 13 gold, 53 silver, and 86 bronze, in addition to 35 honorable mentions. This result places Brazil 19th in the overall country ranking for this edition. This year, 589 students from 104 countries participated in the IMO.