Brazil Achieves Best Results in 39 Years in International Mathematics Olympiad

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazil ranked 10th in the International Mathematical Olympiad, the major competition among high school students aged 14-19.

This is the best result ever achieved since Brazil joined the competition 39 years ago. The competition was founded in 1959. In this year’s edition, 105 countries competed.

In all, the Brazilian team scored 165 points, with one gold and five silver medals. With the result, it surpassed countries like Japan, France, Canada, and Germany.

Top 10 in the 2020 International Mathematical Olympiad:

1. China
2. Russia
3. United States
4. South Korea
5. Thailand
6. Italy
7. Poland
8. Australia
9. United Kingdom
10. Brazil

The students who won the medals are:

• Pedro Gomes Cabral, from Fortaleza (CE) – Gold
• Bernardo Peruzzo Trevizan, from São Paulo (SP) – Silver
• Francisco Moreira Machado Neto, from Fortaleza (CE) – Silver
• Gabriel Ribeiro Paiva, from Fortaleza (CE) – Silver
• Guilherme Zeus Dantas e Moura, from Maricá (RJ) – Silver
• Pablo Andrade Carvalho Barros, of Teresina (PI) – Silver

To reach the international stage, they had previously won medals in the Brazilian Mathematical Olympiad (OBM). Later, they underwent three selective tests and training. They were led by Carlos Gustavo Moreira, researcher of the Institute of Pure and Applied Mathematics (IMPA ) and general coordinator of the OBM, and Matheus Secco, of the Czech Academy of Sciences.

“They are the result of a very competitive and rigorous selection process, open to all schools in the country,” says Carlos Moreira. “With these medals, they will probably get scholarships in the best universities and will have great career prospects in several areas”.

Brain drain

He laments the potential “brain drain” of these youths since there is little prospect of work for them in Brazil after graduation. Moreira mentions that there is high-quality scientific research in Brazil, including in Mathematics, with great undergraduate and graduate courses in diverse areas. But the perspectives for youths are “uncertain and obscure”.

“Brazil is among the most developed countries in Mathematical research – group 5 of the IMU, according to the International Union of Mathematics. Therefore, the awarded students could pursue a brilliant career in Brazil. But the government is cutting graduate scholarships and university positions, which renders the future prospects for these youths and the country uncertain and obscure,” he says.

Such positive results in mathematics are not a reality for the entire population. Data from the most recent edition of the International Student Assessment Program (PISA) places Brazil among the last bottom in the mathematics test.

The competition was scheduled to take place in St. Petersburg, Russia, but because of the pandemic, students took the tests in their own countries. In Brazil, the tests were held on September 21st and 22nd at the Federal University of Ceará (UFC) and at the Institute of Pure and Applied Mathematics (IMPA) in Rio de Janeiro.

Source: G1