The 'Concurso Binacional de Matemáticas Perú Ecuador 2026' (Peru-Ecuador Binational Mathematics Competition) held between Peru and Ecuador has concluded, and the results revealed the efficiency gap between the education systems of the two countries. Peru, despite participating with only 70 students in this prestigious competition, exhibited an incredible success performance with 13 gold, 16 silver, and 7 bronze medals. In particular, the Peruvian team's achievement of six perfect scores in different categories proved how high the students' mathematical competence is and the depth of their education quality. In contrast, host Ecuador, which participated in the competition with a total of 330 students, could not achieve the expected level of success even though it increased its medal count. Ecuador won only 2 gold medals, while also securing 10 silver and 26 bronze medals to place on the medal table.
When past data of the competition is examined, it is seen that Ecuador participated with only 20 students in 2025 and won a single gold medal. Ecuador, which increased the number of participants by 16.5 times this year to 330 students, was only able to double the number of gold medals and significantly increased silver and bronze medals. However, the fact that Ecuador's gold medal count increased to only two despite this huge increase in participation clearly shows that quantity did not surpass quality. Peru, on the other hand, participated with over 500 students last year but preferred to enter the competition with 70 students by reducing participation this year, achieving a much higher efficiency rate with a small number of students. The differences between the strategies, student selection criteria, and educational methods of both countries are likely to be a topic of discussion in the education world along with these results.
The competition was jointly organized by the Ecuadorian Mathematics Olympiad (OMEC) and Peru's Binaria Matemática organizations. Held on June 27 in the city of Samborondón, Guayas province, the event catered to students in 8 different levels ranging from 5th grade to 3rd year of high school. One of the most important details in the history of the organization is that this international competition was held on Ecuadorian soil for the first time. This meeting, held with the participation of hundreds of students from both Ecuador and Peru, aimed to strengthen academic and cultural dialogue between the two countries, while also offering students the opportunity to showcase their talents on an international platform. Within the scope of the competition, students developed their analytical thinking skills by struggling with challenging mathematical problems and also gained experience competing with their peers.
One of the names that attracted the most attention in the competition was 17-year-old Ricardo De Blas, who won a gold medal in the high school category (2nd and 3rd year). Ricardo, who studies at Unidad Educativa Bilingüe Torremar school in Guayaquil, has been participating in mathematics competitions since the age of 10 and has an impressive list of achievements, including three consecutive golds at APOL, three national golds at OMEC, and medals in South American tournaments. The successful student, who represented his country at the IMO (International Mathematics Olympiad), the world's most difficult mathematics competition in 2025, is preparing to proudly represent Ecuador again at IMO 2026 to be held in China in July of this year. Ricardo attributes his exam success to a regular strategy involving the time he allocates to each question and his calmness, while also exhibiting his leadership qualities by serving as a volunteer in the organization of the competition on the same day.
Another notable success story belongs to 11-year-old Joaquín Zurita, who participated in the competition for the first time and won a gold medal. The little genius, a 6th-grade student at Colegio Nuevo Mundo in Ambato, discovered his interest in mathematics at a very young age while calculating shopping while going to the market with his parents. Joaquín follows a disciplined method based on not only corporate lessons to prepare for such international competitions, but also working with a private tutor, practicing with his father, and constantly working individually. Like Ricardo, the biggest goal of this small student, whose greatest ambition is to one day win Ecuador a medal at the International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO), his future career is followed with curiosity in the education community. This competition served not only to win country medals but also to bring bright minds like Ricardo and Joaquín to the international arena.
이 기사에 대해 질문
답변은 이 기사만을 바탕으로 AI가 생성합니다.