Taiwan Wins 2 Gold, 2 Silver Medals In 2007 International Chemistry Olympiad

The delegation from Taiwan set off on July 15, 2007 to Russia to join the event. The closing ceremony to present awards was held at 3pm, July 23, 2007 in the auditorium of Moscow State University. Taiwan sent four senior high school students to the competition who were trained by Professor Fang Tai-shan, Department of Chemistry, National Taiwan Normal University. Chen Yi-shiing, Director of the Department of Secondary Education, Ministry of Education, was the leader of the delegation. Professor Fang Tai-shan (Professor, National Taiwan Normal University), Jhang Yi-jhih (Associate Professor, National Taiwan Normal University), Jian Dun-cheng (Assistant Professor, National Taiwan Normal University), Jin Bi-yao (Associate Professor, National Taiwan University) and Chen Ya-ling (Teacher, Taipei Municipal Jiangguo High School) were also members of the delegation.

The biographical information on the four participating students and their respective results are as follows:

• He Yin-yao, sophomore, National Experimental High School at Hsinchu Science Park, Gold Medal
• Huang Wei-lun, junior, Taipei Municipal Jiangguo High School, Gold Medal
• Jhang Kai-ruei, sophomore, National Taichung First Senior High School, Silver Medal (First of all silver medalists)
• Lin Ji-yang, sophomore, Taipei Municipal Jiangguo High School, Silver Medal

The four participants expressed their gratitude for the encouragement of their teachers and the support of their families. They also thanked the delegation members for their assistance. Huang Wei-lun indicated that he intends to leverage his knowledge in chemistry and pursue bio-medical studies, while the other three participants -- He Yin-yao, Jhang Kai-ruei and Lin Ji-yang -- said that they wish to continue their work in chemistry.

The opening ceremony of the 39th IChO was held at 11am, July 16, 2007 in the science hall of Moscow State University. The Taiwanese delegation participated as representatives of Chinese Taipei, under the same formula as is used in the Olympics, but they entered the stadium with the national flag of the R.O.C. The opening ceremony was solemn and earnest, a strong sign of the focus and emphasis on science education by the host country.

The chief instructor of the Taiwanese delegation, Associate Professor Jhang Yi-jhih, indicated that the disciplined approach that the Russian people take toward experiments was fully reflected in the competition. It is hoped that the Taiwanese students can emulate this attitude by raising the bar for the accuracy of their experiments, allowing them eventually to become excellent scientists. Instructor Jin Bi-yao said that the degree of difficulty in the questions provided by Russia was much higher than in previous years. It was quite an achievement for the Taiwanese students to have such an impressive performance. Instructor Jian Dun-cheng mentioned that many professors provided their support and instruction during the training period in Taiwan. Such an outstanding achievement was only possible through the combined support of numerous professors back home and the performance of the students at the event.

After the closing of the 39th IChO, the delegation embarked on a four-day, three-night trip to cultural and academic sites in St. Petersburg. The delegation was scheduled to return to Taiwan on July 28, 2007. Taiwan will continue to train high-caliber students and send them to various international competitions in order to gain recognition and promote international exchange.

In order to encourage students to excel in such competitions, the Ministry of Education has set forth the Scheme for Further Education of Outstanding Students Participating in International Science Olympiads and International Science Exhibitions. Those students who win gold, silver or bronze medals in International Science Olympiads can be admitted directly to relevant departments in universities or recommended to any departments at the university level. Those students who win honorary awards can be recommended to relevant departments in universities. A winner of a gold medal can receive a total scholarship of NT$200,000, while the winner of a silver medal can receive an NT$100,000 scholarship and a bronze medal winner can win an NT$50,000 scholarship. However, the value of the scholarship is capped at that for the highest-level medal in the event that students win two or more awards in the same year in the same discipline or different disciplines.

Below is a list of the medals won by Taiwanese students in International Chemistry Olympiads in recent years.