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4 gold, 1 silver for Taiwan at International Physics Olympiad
2018-07-31

Taiwan’s winning team of young physics students show off their medals and certificates at the 49th IPhO July 28 in Lisbon, Portugal. (Courtesy of MOE)

Taiwan’s winning team of young physics students show off their medals and certificates at the 49th IPhO July 28 in Lisbon, Portugal. (Courtesy of MOE)
 

Five Taiwan students have won four gold medals and one silver placing the country third at the 49th International Physics Olympiad (IPhO) ending July 29 in Lisbon, Portugal.
 
The team were up against 391 students from 86 countries and territories at the world’s largest physics contest for high school students, according to the Ministry of Education. Taiwan tied with Russia, Singapore and South Korea after India and China placed first with five golds each.
 
The team’s coach, Kao Hsien-chung, a physics professor at National Taiwan Normal University in Taipei City, said the students shone in the theoretical part of the competition, but fell short in the experimental section.
 
This year’s gold medalists are Chiang Li-yuan, Chung Shang-hsuan and Kao Wei-bo from Taipei Municipal Jianguo High School and Chen Chang-han from Taichung Municipal First Senior High School in central Taiwan. Tseng Sian-yang from National Experimental High School in Hsinchu Science Park in northern Taiwan bagged the silver medal. 
 
The five were selected from almost 2,000 pupils countrywide after four rounds of qualifiers. To encourage students to enter international science Olympiads, the ministry offers prize money of NT$200,000 (US$6,529) for gold, NT$100,000 for silver and NT$50,000 for bronze medalists.
 
Last year Taiwan came eighth at the IPhO with three gold and two silver medals. (CPY-E)