Mexican students claim five medals at International Mathematical Olympiad in Shanghai
Mexican high school students captured five bronze medals at the 67th International Mathematical Olympiad held in Shanghai from July 10-21, 2026, competing against 666 contestants from 117 countries in one of the world's most demanding academic competitions.
Andrea Sarahi Cascante Duarte from Morelos earned special recognition beyond her bronze medal, receiving the Maryam Mirzakhani Award for achieving the highest overall score among all female participants from the Americas. The award, inaugurated in 2017, honors the late Iranian mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani, who became the first woman to win the Fields Medal in 2014 and died during the 2017 IMO. The award is presented to the highest-scoring female participant from each continent, addressing the historical gender gap in mathematical olympiads.
The Mexican medalists
The five Mexican medalists were:
- Takumi Higashida Martínez from Mexico City
- Juan Luis Manríquez Sequera from Baja California Sur
- Sebastián Sotomayor Trujillo from Nuevo León
- Javier Caram Quirós from Mexico City
- Iker Torres Terrazas from Chihuahua
Their bronze medals placed Mexico third in the Ibero-American regional rankings, behind Brazil and Peru, and 40th in the global standings, one position lower than the previous year.
Competition format and results
The competition's challenging format requires participants to solve six complex problems over two consecutive days, tackling three problems each day, with a maximum possible score of 42 points. This year, judges awarded 55 gold medals, 105 silver medals, and 189 bronze medals, with 141 honorable mentions distributed among participants.
China dominated the competition with a commanding performance, scoring 232 points to secure a 25-point lead over second place. All six Chinese team members won gold medals, marking the nation's eighth consecutive year achieving perfect scores and its 26th championship since 1989. The United States, Russia, Singapore, and Vietnam rounded out the top five positions.
Mexico's selection process and support
The Mexican Mathematics Olympiad, a program of the Mexican Mathematical Society, conducts a rigorous multi-stage selection process to form the national team. Six students are selected from each state for the national contest, from which the final six-member IMO team is chosen. Guadalupe Russell Noriega, head of the OMM, told La Jornada that private sector support and public contributions enable the team's participation, facilitated by nearly 300 volunteers including teachers and students who donate their expertise and time.
Since Romania hosted the first IMO in 1959 with seven participating countries, the competition has grown into a global benchmark for mathematical excellence, expanding to over 100 countries across five continents. Mexico made its debut in the tournament in 1981 and has maintained continuous participation.
The next International Mathematical Olympiad will take place in Budapest, Hungary in 2027, where Mexico's team will have another opportunity to showcase their mathematical prowess on the world stage.
