Dr. Ho Jung-kuei (何榮桂), Professor from the National Taiwan Normal University, led more than 10 professors to train the Taiwanese team. Team members were selected in four stages: primary selection, semi-final selection, pre-game training camp, and final selection. 120 students nationwide joined the primary selection this year. After the semi-final and final selections, 4 students were chosen to represent Taiwan in the IOI. The Taiwanese team went to Brisbane, Australia to join the 2013 IOI on July 5th, 2013. The closing and award ceremonies were held at 2:00 PM on July 12th local time.

Taiwan joined this international competition for the first time in 1994, and has performed well each year. To date, Taiwan has won a total of 14 gold medals, 38 silver medals, and 21 bronze medals in informatics category.

The four winning students’ information and their awards are as follows:

To recognize these students’ outstanding performance, the Ministry of Education (MOE) formulated and issued Regulations Governing Academic Advancement Incentives for Students Who Compete and Perform Well in International Mathematics or Science Olympiads and International Science Fairs. Those who win gold, silver, or bronze medals in the IPhO can be automatically admitted university mathematics and science related departments, or recommended to any university departments for admission. While those who win an honorary award may also be recommended for admission to university mathematics and science departments. Additionally, those who win a gold, silver, or bronze medal will receive 200 thousand NT dollars, 100 thousand NT dollars or 50 thousand NT dollars scholarships, respectively. A student who wins two or more different awards in the same subject area or different subject areas during the same academic year should apply for the most valuable scholarship he qualifies for.

In the future, Taiwan will continue to train students and invite the most outstanding ones to join the international contests to promote the country’s international exchanges and expand the students’ global perspective. Taiwan will no doubt select the best-qualified students to compete in next year’s IOI, which will be held in Taipei.