TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's brightest physics students delivered an outstanding performance at the 55th International Physics Olympiad in France, capturing three gold and two silver medals Thursday (July 24). The impressive haul secured Taiwan's fifth-place ranking in the prestigious global competition. The Ministry of Education (MOE, 教育部) celebrated gold medalists Tsai Chung-Ta (蔡忠達) from Taichung First Senior High School (台中一中), Ho Chung-Chin (何重進) from National Experimental High School at Hsinchu Science Park (新竹實中), and Su Yun-Chieh (蘇筠傑) from Taipei Fuhsing Private School (台北復興實驗高中).
Silver medals went to Ho Cheng-Yu (何承祐) from National Chiayi Senior High School (國立嘉義高中) and Wang Kuan-Yu (王冠宇) from Taipei Municipal Jianguo High School (台北市立建國中學), one of Taiwan's most prestigious academic institutions. Professor Chen Chuan-Jen (陳傳仁) from National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU, 國立師範大學), Taiwan's premier teacher training institution, guided the talented delegation throughout the international competition. The team's success reflects Taiwan's strong emphasis on science education and academic excellence.
The K-12 Education Administration (國教署), Taiwan's primary and secondary education authority, emphasized that Taiwan's team endured a demanding four-stage selection process before competing in France. The comprehensive preparation included preliminary rounds, semi-finals, finals, and intensive pre-competition training sessions. Taiwan's Ministry of Education rewards exceptional performance with direct university admission and substantial scholarships: NT$200,000 (around US$6,800) for gold medalists, NT$100,000 (around US$3,400) for silver, and NT$50,000 (around US$1,700) for bronze winners. ◼