The road to the Gold Medal at the world's most difficult Chemistry Olympiad of a Phan school boy
Nguyen Ngo Duc (class 12A4 - Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted) is the male student who just brought home a Gold Medal for the Vietnamese delegation at the Mendeleev Chemistry Olympiad. This is the Chemistry Olympiad known as "the most difficult in the world".
Determined to "change the color" of the medal
Before coming to Brazil to participate in the Mendeleev Chemistry Olympiad, Nguyen Ngo Duc, with a score in the top 6 selections of the Vietnam Olympic Team, also received a notice from the Vietnam Chemical Society to participate in the Abu Rayhan Biruni International Chemistry Olympiad in Uzbekistan.
Receiving this news, Duc and his family were quite hesitant, because last school year he had been exposed toMendeleev Chemistry Olympiadand won the Silver Medal. To change the medal color, the journey to the competition in Uzbekistan might be easier.
However, with the desire to compete on a big stage at a competition dubbed the "world's most difficult" Chemistry Olympiad, Duc decided to choose a "more difficult" path for himself.
For the second time in the war, Duc said that the main goal is to win the Gold Medal.
However, this is also a challenge for me, because in this contest I have to compete with more than 190 contestants from 40 other countries around the world, the number of contestants is more than last year.
Talking about this exam, Duc shared that the journey of more than 35 hours on a plane and the time difference between the two countries made the members of the Vietnamese team a bit tired when they arrived in the city of Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
That is why, when entering the first round of the theory exam, Duc lacked sleep and was not as focused as in the other exams. It was not until the second round of the theory exam and the practical exam that Duc gradually regained his confidence and completed his exam quite well.
Each test lasts 5 hours, with many problems in different fields of chemistry. Personally, I and many other candidates found this year's test more difficult than previous years and it was difficult to complete the test completely. The questions were highly applicable and required candidates to know how to apply a lot of knowledge they had learned to real life. After completing the test, although I was not satisfied with the result, I thought that I had tried my best.
Student Nguyen Ngo Duc
One special thing about Duc and many other contestants in this competition is that the contestants do not know the results in advance. On the final night of the award ceremony and live broadcast, not only the members of the Vietnamese team in Brazil but also Duc's family at home were very excited.
Recalling this, Ms. Ngo Thi Thanh Huong - Duc's mother said: After the exam, the children shared very little about the results of their tests, so we were all quite worried about their achievements. After the Silver Medal winners were awarded one by one, including 2 Vietnamese students, we believed in their victory, because Duc was the contestant with the second highest score in the team.
Right on the award night, the image of student Nguyen Ngo Duc from Vietnam holding high the red flag with yellow star running from the stands to the stage received many congratulations from teachers, friends and family.
Duc himself said that when he heard the news that he won the Gold Medal, he burst into tears of joy. The victory not only marked the Vietnamese team but also Duc's efforts after 3 years of perseverance at Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted. The victory also helped him regain confidence in himself after many times finishing with many regrets.
Male student with many achievements
Nguyen Ngo Duc is the eldest of three brothers. Since his childhood, because his mother taught nearly 30 km away from home and his father often went to work, Duc and his siblings were mainly taken care of by their grandparents. Talking about his grandson, Mr. Nguyen Van Oanh is most proud that Duc was obedient and intelligent since childhood: When he was only 5 years old, he already knew how to do all the addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
During the 12 years of general education from primary to secondary school at Dang Thai Mai Secondary School and then Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted, Duc shared that he was greatly influenced by his mother, a high school math teacher who was quite strict. Ms. Huong, Duc's mother, also said: I do not put pressure on my child's studies so that he can develop his own abilities. However, I always require my child to concentrate and do his studies thoroughly when studying.
Perhaps because he grew up in an educational environment from a young age, Duc was a self-disciplined and conscious student from an early age. With his intelligence and diligence, in grade 9, Duc was the valedictorian of the Chemistry subject at the Vinh City Excellent Student Competition and won third prize at the provincial level. In the entrance exam to grade 10 of Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted, Duc was the second in the Chemistry class.
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Class K51 of Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted, Nguyen Ngo Duc is also one of the few students who participated in the National Excellent Student Competition twice (grade 11 and grade 12) and both times won first prize. This is a favorable door for Duc to enter the second round of selection for the National Olympic Team to participate in the International Chemistry Olympiad.
Unfortunately, despite having a good starting point, Duc was unsuccessful both times he participated, leaving many regrets for himself, his teachers and his family. In difficult times, Duc always had his mother by his side to encourage and motivate him. He himself told himself "if you lose this round, you can set up another round" and when he had the opportunity to be selected to participate in the Mendeleev Chemistry Olympiad, Duc tried his best so that he would have no regrets.
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With 2 Silver and Gold Medals in the Chemistry Competition known as "The most difficult Chemistry Olympiad in the world", Duc said that he has regained confidence in himself. Behind the achievements are long days of hard studying, sleepless nights, and hurried train trips between Vinh and Hanoi lasting many weeks during the sprint exam preparation period.
Behind Duc's results are the shadows of his teachers, school, and family who have always been there to encourage and motivate him to overcome his "old shadow".
In addition to being diligent, Duc has the advantage of being careful and calm when doing his homework. Therefore, when he won the first prize in the national excellent student competition in grade 11, we were not surprised. Duc is also a determined student, even though he failed in some exams, he never lost his will to try. I think that the Gold Medal that Duc won in this year's exam is not just a competition, but more importantly, it is a medal of courage, daring to challenge, daring to "overcome oneself".
Teacher Le Van Tu - Head of the Chemistry Team of Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted
The 59th Mendeleev International Chemistry Olympiad 2025 took place from May 3 to May 13 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil with the participation of 192 contestants from 40 countries and territories.
The exam is named after Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev, who invented the periodic table of chemical elements. This is one of the oldest and most prestigious science Olympiads in the world, organized under the auspices of UNESCO. The exam is also considered one of the most prestigious and challenging academic exams in the field of Chemistry for high school students, often dubbed "The most difficult Chemistry exam on the planet".
Since 2023, the Olympiad has been held within the framework of the Decade of Science and Technology announced by the President of Russia and included in the "Victory Science" initiative.
The Vietnamese student delegation participated in the exam at the invitation of the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation. They were selected from the 2025 regional and international Olympic team selection exam and the Ministry of Education and Training assigned the University of Science - Vietnam National University, Hanoi to preside over the training and organization of the delegation.
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