TEHRAN – Talented Iranian students have achieved remarkable success at international Olympiads, winning 13 medals and securing the championship title at the International Physics Olympiad despite the numerous challenges posed by the US-Israeli war against the country.

Last year, Iranian students took part in 14 international scientific competitions but were unable to participate in two Olympiads due to the outbreak of war. Despite the hardships and challenges brought about by the ongoing conflict, they demonstrated their outstanding abilities by setting new benchmarks in various competitions and proudly raising Iran’s flag on the international stage. Their remarkable achievements have become a source of great pride for the country, Mehr news agency quoted Seyyed Reza Hosseini, head of the Young Scholars Club, as saying.

The students performed outstandingly at the 56th International Physics Olympiad (IPhO); the five-member team ranked first globally, garnering three gold medals and two silver medals, which was exceptional over the past 20 years, he added.

Held from July 4 to 12 in Bucaramanga, Colombia, the IPhO 2026 brought together over 400 students from more than 90 countries.

Hirbod Foudazi, Kian Zarrabian, and Mohammad Mirmohammadi secured gold medals, while Amir-Sam Goharpey and Nima Koushki won silver medals.

Despite attacks on Iran’s national artificial intelligence infrastructure that disrupted the team’s access to computing resources and data centers, Iranian students won their first gold medal at the International Olympiad in Artificial Intelligence (IOAI), the official said.
The team also won two silver medals and one bronze at the third edition of the competition, held from August 2 to 8 in Astana, Kazakhstan, according to the official.

Shayan Rezaeizadeh grabbed the gold medal, Mohammad-Reza Darvishi, and Mohammad-Amin Nazmfar won the silver medals, while Mani Monjipor received the bronze medal.

Brilliant Iranian students proudly claimed their first-ever medals at the 67th International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO), which was organized on July 15 and 16 in Shanghai, China. They won two gold medals, one silver medal, and three bronze medals.

Alireza Joonbakhsh-Najafabadi and Alireza Sharifi won the gold medals, Amirhossein Tayyeb clinched the silver medal, and Arsha Azizeddin, Radin Nik-Eqbali, and Arian Zandi received the bronze medals.

Female Iranian students secured an unprecedented success at the 22nd International Geography Olympiad (iGeo), held from August 11 to 17 in Istanbul, Turkey. They succeeded in winning a bronze medal and three honorable mentions; their performance was inspiring to many other nations, Hosseini further noted.

Also, in the 19th International Earth Science Olympiad (IESO 2026) in Italy, the Iranian team won an impressive haul of two silver medals, six bronze medals, and a top prize.

Mehraneh Vashaqani-Farahani secured the world’s top ranking in the Young Reporters of the International Union of Geological Sciences short documentary category, delivering one of the most notable results for the Iranian team at this year’s competition, IRNA reported.

In the individual examinations, Shamim Molla-Qolizadeh and Javad Namjoo each won a silver medal, while Ghazal Qazizadeh took bronze.

Namjoo also won a bronze medal in the Earth System Project (ESP) category. In the International Team Field Investigation (ITFI), Molla-Qolizadeh, Namjoo, Qazizadeh and Vashaqani-Farahani each earned a bronze medal.

Iranian students clinched medals and an honorable mention at the 9th International Economics Olympiad (IEO 2026) held from July 12-20 in Shenzhen China, and the 38th edition of the International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) held from August 9 to 16 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

This year, 270 students from 54 countries attended the IEO competition. Mobin Karimi Dizicheh secured a silver medal. He received an honorable mention and also won Best in Finance, Borna news agency reported.

Mohammad-Hossein Rahimi Nejad, Alireza Atashi, and Ehsan Zolfaghari won the bronze medals.

Meanwhile, a total of 386 students from more than 97 countries participated in this year’s IOI competition.

Hamed Ghaffariaghdas and Arash Ostadsharif-Memar grabbed the silver medals, while Mohammad Shayan won the bronze medal. Moreover, Bahamin Shafaqi received the honorable mention.

The 37th International Biology Olympiad (IBO 2026) took place from July 12 to 19 in the city of Vilnius, Lithuania. The event brought together participants from some 80 countries across five continents.

Radin Bayani, Mohammad-Reza Vaezi, and Amir-Hossein Nosrati grabbed gold medals, while Amir-Hossein Hemmati won the silver medal, IRIB reported.

The 58th International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO 2026) was held from July 10 to 19 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Over 350 students from 90 countries attended the event.

Ali Shamsi-Mofakhar, Mahyar Najar, and Amir-Reza Hosseini secured silver medals, while Ario Seirafi won the bronze medal.

Four Iranian female students attended the Open International Geography Olympiad (OpenGeo) 2026, winning four medals, including a silver medal and three bronze medals for the first time.

Artina Heidari won the silver medal; Setayesh Haqnazari, Sana Karbalaei Vali, and Helia Khodabandelou received the bronze medals, IRIB reported.

The six-member Iranian team has shown brilliance, claiming the championship at the fourth International Mathematics Summer Camp (IMSC) held in Beijing, China, from June 17 to July 12, demonstrating exceptional teamwork and dedication to mathematics.

Aryan Zandi, Arsha Azizoddin, Seyyed Amir-Hossein Tayeb, Alireza Sharifi, Radin Nik-Eqbali, and Ali Joonbakhsh Najafabadi won 4 gold medals and two silver medals, outperforming students from Poland and Brazil, IRNA reported.

Iran’s Physics Olympiad team, consisting of five students, has achieved an astounding triumph at the International Scientific Physics Olympiad 2026, winning two gold medals, a silver, and a bronze.

Hirbod Foudazi was ranked first among all participants, receiving the title of absolute winner, achieving the best result in the Theoretical Exam, and grabbing the gold medal and the national diamond, IRNA reported.

Amir-Sam Goharpey won the other gold medal; Kian Zarrabian and Mohammad Mirmohammadi received a silver medal and a bronze medal, respectively.

The ISPhO-2026 Olympiad was held exclusively online from June 21 to June 30, 2026.

MT/MG