Celebrating Girls' Achievements in the 2024 Math Olympiad Team
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Chapter 1: The Upcoming 2024 IMO
The 2024 International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO) is just around the corner, set to take place in Bath, England, from July 12th to 18th. Each participating country selects a team of six representatives through a demanding selection process that can span several years. Notable IMO Gold Medallists include Terence Tao, an Australian Fields Medallist, and Grigori Perelman, who famously solved the Poincaré conjecture and declined the million-dollar prize.
Last week, the Australian Team was unveiled, and I was both surprised and thrilled to learn that four out of the six members are girls! The representatives for Australia at the 2024 IMO will be:
- William Cheah
- Amber Li
- Laura Nan
- Alex Qiu
- Cloris Xu
- Iris Xu
Cloris and Iris Xu, twin sisters from Baulkham Hills High School in Sydney's outer western suburbs, are among the team members. Cloris shared, "I initially enjoyed maths for fun, but once I realized its vast applications in various fields, I understood its limitless potential."
Section 1.1: Recent Achievements
Cloris, Iris, Amber, and Laura were also integral members of the Australian team that secured 2nd place in the 2024 European Girls Mathematical Olympiad (EGMO). The results were as follows:
- 1st place — USA
- 2nd place — Australia
- 3rd place — China
To emphasize how remarkable this achievement is, consider the following:
- 2024 EGMO Results:
- 1st place — USA (population: 340 million)
- 2nd place — Australia (population: 26 million)
- 3rd place — China (population: 1.4 billion)
Section 1.2: A Shift in Gender Representation
Historically, the IMO has been male-dominated. Statistics from the official IMO website reveal that females comprise less than 8% of all representatives, and among the top 20 countries, this figure drops below 5%.
This year's Australian team stands out, having more girls than boys, which is quite an achievement. While I initially thought this was unprecedented, I learned via Reddit that Iceland fielded a team of four girls and two boys in 2010. Gender data for participants isn't detailed on the IMO's official site, but Icelandic names can indicate gender, ending in “dóttir” for females and “son” for males.
Section 1.3: Encouraging Trends
European teams seem to have a higher representation of females compared to those from other continents. It's encouraging to see Australia at the forefront of promoting female participation in high-level mathematics competitions. This commendation goes not only to the four exceptional girls but also to Angelo Di Pasquale (IMO Team Leader and Director of Training), Sally Tsang (EGMO team leader), and everyone at the Australian Maths Trust who contributed to their preparation.
Before concluding, I would also like to congratulate the two male members of the 2024 Australian IMO Team: William Cheah and Alex Qiu. Remarkably, William is only in Year 10 and is already competing in his third IMO!
One last exciting announcement is that next year's IMO will take place in my hometown: Melbourne, Australia.
If you're interested in further analysis of IMO data, consider checking out these articles:
- International Math Olympiad (IMO) — Ranking Countries After Adjusting for Population and GDP
- IMO 2021 — Results and Analysis
- IMO 2023 Problem 1 — Some Number Theory to get your Brain Buzzing
- Ninja Paths in Japanese Triangles — IMO 2023 Problem 5