RELEASEMelbourne school girls make history at European Girls’ Mathematical Olympiad
Melbourne school girls Grace He, a year 10 student at Methodist Ladies’ College, and Yifan Guo, a year 12 student at Glen Waverley Senior College, will make up half the Australian team making history this month by representing their country for the first time at the 2018 European Girls’ Mathematical Olympiad (EGMO).
EGMO is an international mathematics competition for female school-aged students. Grace and Yifan will compete against other talented female mathematicians by writing proofs to six questions over two days!
In 2017 Grace was awarded the Australian Mathematics Trust’s inaugural Cheryl Praeger Medal for Victoria, given to top performing girls in the Australian Mathematics Competition (AMC). The EGMO offers Grace an exciting new experience where she will be travelling to an unfamiliar country and meeting different people with similar mathematical interests.
Yifan is looking forward to interaction with her teammates and other young mathematicians, but her focus is on her passion. ‘I absolutely love that feeling of being confused and fascinated by a problem, while my brain is working hard trying to get my head around it … solving a problem often requires us to think outside the box and see the hidden connections that we often don’t see straight away, which I found to be a very exciting and satisfying experience.’
The team consists of year 12 students Yifan Guo, Alice Zhang, Ellen Zheng and the youngest member Grace He, who is in year 10.
The EGMO has steadily grown into a major international event since its inception and the Australian Mathematics Trust is excited to have the opportunity to support a team. In 2012 only 19 countries participated in EGMO, while in 2018 there are 52 participating countries including 16 non-European countries. The 2018 EGMO will take place in Florence, Italy, on 9–15 April.
The AMT’s 2018 EGMO initiative received grant funding from the Australian Government through the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science under the Inspiring Australia – Science Engagement Programme. It is also supported by the Trust’s corporate sponsor, Optiver.
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Emma van der Moezel, Marketing and Digital Services Manager
Australian Mathematics Trust
02 6201 2208 or [email protected]
Nathan Ford, Chief Executive Officer
Australian Mathematics Trust
02 6201 2440 or 0437 226 739
Learn more about the Australian Mathematics Trust at www.amt.edu.au
Head of Mathematics and Statistics at University of Sydney and Australian Mathematics Trust board member, Professor Jacqui Ramagge
Australian Mathematics Trust board member and Chair of the Australian Mathematical Olympiad Committee, University of Western Australia Emeritus Professor Cheryl Praeger AM
EGMO team member
EGMO team leaders Michelle Chen and Thanom Shaw
Photo credit: Steven Grayston ---
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