The American Chemical Society (ACS) announces that the four high school students who represented the U.S. at the annual International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) each earned a gold medal. This is reportedly the second year in a row in which the U.S. team earned four golds. The competition was held in Bratislava, Slovakia and Prague, Czech Republic July 19-29.
The members of the highest-performing team in the history of America’s participation in the event are:
- Jeffrey Shi of Marcellus High School, Marcellus, New York, who placed 4th
- Michelle Lu of Pomperaug High School, Southbury, Connecticut, who placed 10th
- Andrew Wu of Park Tudor School, Indianapolis, Indiana, who placed 12th
- Yutong Dai of Princeton International School of Mathematics and Science, Princeton, New Jersey, who placed 13th
The competition for the medals was fierce; the U.S. team competed with 300 high school students from 76 countries.
ACS has sponsored the American team annually since the U.S. joined the Olympiad in 1984. Principal funding is through the ACS Donald F. and Mildred Topp Othmer Olympiad Endowment, with additional support from the U.S. Air Force Academy, Department of Chemistry; Carolina Biological Supply Company; National Geographic Learning|Cengage Learning; Fisher Science Education; Flinn Scientific Inc.; Pearson; Texas Instruments Inc.; University Science Books; and Wiley & Sons Publishers.
The International Chemistry Olympiad originated with Czechoslovakia, Poland and Hungary in 1968. Soon, other Eastern European countries joined the event; Western Europe began participating in 1974. The first U.S. team competed in 1984, winning one silver and two bronze medals.
For more information, visit: www.acs.org
