A team of eight students representing Hong Kong achieved excellent results in the 21st Asian Physics Olympiad (APhO 2021), winning two gold medals, two silver medals, two bronze medals and two honourable mentions, which is the best result in recent years.
The APhO aims to promote physics education as well as nurture and inspire students who are highly talented in physics. Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, contestants participated in the APhO 2021 in their own country or city under online monitoring and joined virtual activities from May 17 to 24. Around 181 contestants from 22 countries or cities participated in the competition.
Cheng Yat-long (Raimondi College) and Lau Sze-chun (Diocesan Boys' School) won two gold medals in the competition. The two silver medallists were Cheung Man-yin (Queen's College) and Lam Chung-wang (St Paul's Co-educational College). Chan Tsz-chun (International Christian Quality Music Secondary and Primary School) and Gabriel Tong (Sheng Kung Hui Tsang Shiu Tim Secondary School) each won a bronze medal. In addition, Lennon Chan (St Paul's Co-educational College) and Roland Cheung (Sing Yin Secondary School) each received an honourable mention.
The Secretary for Education, Mr Kevin Yeung, congratulated the Hong Kong team today (May 24) on its outstanding performance. "The impressive results achieved by the Hong Kong team in the APhO this year have demonstrated the concerted efforts of different stakeholders in promoting diversified science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education. I believe these learning experiences help unleash students' potential in science and technology as well as instil in them a spirit to pursue truth and innovation," Mr Yeung said.
"The Education Bureau (EDB) first set up the Gifted Education Fund in 2016 and has so far injected $1.6 billion into the Fund. In the 2019/20 and 2020/21 school years, the Fund has supported 17 off-school advanced learning programmes offered by different post-secondary institutions and organisations. These programmes, targeting gifted students at the primary and secondary levels, unleash their potential through challenging learning activities and enhance the competitiveness of Hong Kong in the long run," he added.
Members of the Hong Kong team had earlier distinguished themselves in last year's Hong Kong Physics Olympiad, and subsequently received training under the enrichment programme arranged by the Hong Kong Academy for Gifted Education. The outstanding students in the programme were then selected as contestants representing Hong Kong to participate in the APhO this year. The Hong Kong team's participation in the competition was fully funded by the EDB.
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