Filipino HS students win in int’l math tilts

Two groups of young Filipino numbers aces—all high school students from Metro Manila—have brought home a total of seven medals and merit awards from two tough international math contests in China.

Adrian Reginald Sy, a sophomore student of St. Jude Catholic School in Manila, won a silver medal at the 9th China Southeast Mathematics Olympiad (CSMO) in Fujian.

On the other hand, a junior student from the same school, Ma. Czarina Lao, bagged a silver medal at the 2012 China Girls’ Mathematics Olympiad (CGMO) in Guangzhou.

In an e-mail to the Inquirer, Dr. Simon Chua, president of the nongovernment Mathematics Trainers’ Guild-Philippines (MTG), on Monday said that the Philippine delegation also brought home five bronze medals from the two contests.

The medals came courtesy of Austin Eldrich Chua from St. Jude Catholic School and Angelo Sevilleno from Valenzuela City Science High School in the CSMO, and Kelsey Lim Tiong Soon from Grace Christian College, Reie Jiana Reynoso from Philippine Science High School-Main and Mikaela Angelina Uy, also from St. Jude Catholic School, in the CGMO.

The CSMO merit awardees were Gen Mark Tanno from Southville International School and Colleges, Jervis Chua from Philippine Cultural College and Alexander Sarino from Valenzuela City High School.

The country’s participants in both contests are wards of the MTG.

Chua referred to the CSMO and CGMO as “two of the toughest math competitions in the region.”

Aside from the host country which topped the CSMO, the Aug. 18 contest also drew over 240 contestants from Hong Kong, Macau, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.

The CGMO, meanwhile, attracted around 200 students from 10 countries. It was held on Aug. 15.