International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) is a mathematical competition organized by Hungarian mathematical circles in 1894. Comparing mathematics competition with sports competition, it is the Soviet Union that is linked with ancient Greece, the birthplace of science. She called the math competition the math Olympics.
In the first half of the 20th century, different countries organized all kinds of mathematics competitions at all levels, first in schools, then in regions, and then in the whole country, and gradually formed a pyramid competition system. The further development of national competitions naturally creates the necessary conditions for the formation of the highest international competition.
The exam is divided into two days, 4.5 hours a day, and three questions are tested. Six players from the same team were assigned to six different examination rooms to answer questions independently. The answer sheet will be judged by the national team leader and then negotiated with the coordinator designated by the organizer. If there is any objection, it will be submitted to the examiner's Committee for arbitration. 7 points for each question, out of 42 points.
There are first prize (gold medal), second prize (silver medal) and third prize (bronze medal) in the competition, and the ratio is roughly1:2: 3; About half of the contestants won the prize. The award criteria of each session are related to the results of the current exam.
IMO is not a competition between teams, so there is no team award, but all teams attach great importance to the ranking of team total scores. Judging from the situation in recent years, China, Russian, American, German, Romanian and other countries are stronger.