3 Filipinos bag medals in China math tilt

MANILA, Philippines—Three high school students from an award-winning math guild won for the country a silver and two bronze medals in the recently concluded 6th China Southeast Mathematical Olympiad (CSMO) in Nanchang.

John Russel Virata from Gideon Academy in Pasay City came away with a silver medal while Zheng Rong Wu of Zamboanga Chong Hua High School in Zamboanga City and Zixin Zhang from Grace Christian College in Quezon City each won a bronze medal.

The three, all of whom trained at the Mathematics Trainers’ Guild-Philippines (MTG), were the country’s only delegates to this year’s competition, according to MTG president Dr. Simon Chua.

Virata, Wu and Zhang competed against more than 170 contestants from Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, India, Romania and China—host of the annual contest—which was held from July 26 to 31 at the Attached Middle School of Jiangxi Normal University.

Both Virata and Wu earlier won a silver and two bronze medals in the 10th World Youth Invitational Mathematics Intercities Competition held last month in Durban, South Africa. Early this year, Wu also won a gold medal at the 2009 International Regions Mathematics League in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“We are very happy our three delegates won medals this year. For the first time in four years, the Philippines won a silver medal in the CSMO,” Chua told the Inquirer. –Jerry E. Esplanada, Philippine Daily Inquirer