The Philippines bagged three awards at the 36th International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) held in Alexandra, Egypt.
The IOI “is one of 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,” according to the contest’s official website.
Three of the four contestants from the Philippines bagged a silver medal, a bronze medal and an honorable mention.
The Philippine team at the Giza pyramid complex in Egypt where the 36th International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) awarding ceremony was held on Sept. 6. (From left) Deputy leader Gerard Francis Ortega, leader Kevin Charles Atienza, and contestants Jerome Austin Te, Hans Gabriel De Vera, Walsh Nico Adrian Letran and Filbert Ephraim Wu (Contributed photo)
The Philippine team at the 36th International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) in Alexandra, Egypt (Photo from IOI)
The 36th International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) in Alexandra, Egypt (Photos from IOI)
Winning the country’s silver medal is Jerome Austin Te, a Grade 10 student at Jubilee Christian Academy. This is Te’s second win at the IOI. At the 35th IOI held last year in Hungary, he won a bronze medal.
"I am elated to receive a silver medal in this year’s IOI. This is only the 10th time the Philippines has sent a team to the IOI and I’m truly grateful to all who have contributed to the success of the Philippine Team, most notably our mentors at NOI without whose programs there would have been no team to the IOI," Te told Manila Bulletin
According to him, "The path towards technological advancement is still being paved, and I am honored to contribute to the country being recognized in the global arena. I hope this serves as inspiration to the younger generation to continue working hard and pursue science because this is the way of the future. I hope that by the achievements of Filipinos, our countrymen would develop the confidence not only in informatics but in every academic pursuit as well."
Bagging a bronze medal is Filbert Ephraim Wu, a Grade 12 student at Victory Christian International School. This is Wu’s second medal at the IOI. Last year, he won a bronze medal at 35th IOI. .
“I really enjoyed IOI 2024, my last high school competition! The event was held in Egypt, where I loved experiencing the Arabic culture and cuisine,” said Wu.
He added, “The competition gave us six interesting problems, and I was thrilled to finally fully solve an IOI problem during the contest! After two days of intense competition, I won a bronze medal, and the backdrop of the Pyramid of Giza during the awards ceremony was absolutely awe-inspiring!”
Wu said, “Looking back, my training for IOI gave me even stronger problem solving skills and better intuition on programming tasks, which I will bring along in my college journey and beyond.”
In addition, Walsh Nico Adrian Letran, a Grade 12 student at Saint Jude Catholic School, garnered an honorable mention.
Also representing the Philippines was Hans Gabriel De Vera, a Grade 11 student at Philippine Science High School–Main Campus.
Accompanying the students were Kevin Charles Atienza, leader, and Gerard Francis Ortega, deputy leader.
Last year, the Philippines won a silver and two bronze medals at the IOI.
A total of 362 contestants joined this year’s IOI from 91 countries including the US, Japan, Canada, South Korea, Vietnam, Singapore, Thailand, Germany and the United Kingdom.
Since its first participation at the IOI in 2015, the Philippines has won four silver medals, 14 bronze medals and two honorable mentions.
The Filipino contestants were selected through the National Olympiad in Informatics-Philippines (NOI.PH). The country’s participation in the IOI was supported by the Department of Science and Technology-Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI).