From September 1 to 8, 2024, the 36th International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) took place in Alexandria, Egypt. This prestigious event gathered 370 students from 96 countries, competing in one of the world’s leading programming and problem-solving contests. Among the contenders, the Macedonian team achieved remarkable success, securing a silver medal and showcasing their exceptional skills on an international stage.
Macedonian Achievements
The Macedonian delegation consisted of talented young computer scientists: Damjan Davkov from Shtip, Blagoj Rujanoski Stojanovski from Prilep, Viktor Maksimoski from Gostivar, and Sofia Velkovska from Skopje. Their hard work and dedication were rewarded with impressive results:
- Damjan Davkov won a silver medal, narrowly missing out on gold by just 9 points out of a possible 600.
- Blagoj Rujanoski Stojanovski earned an Olympic medal, highlighting the team’s outstanding performance.
The Macedonian team’s success was further enhanced by their coach, Dr. Mile Jovanov and Dr. Emil Stankov from the Faculty of Information Sciences and Computer Engineering (FINKI). Their guidance and support played a crucial role in the team’s achievement.
Support and Preparation
The talented students were selected through rigorous competitions organized by the Association of Informatics of Macedonia (ZIM), which are conducted throughout the year. These competitions test students’ programming abilities, problem analysis, and algorithm design skills. The preparation for the IOI was made possible through the support of FINKI and several socially responsible companies, including Sorsix, Netcetara, Codecham, and Loka.
Future Prospects
Reflecting on the success, Prof. Dr. Mile Jovanov, President of the Association of Computer Scientists of Macedonia, expressed his enthusiasm:
“I am happy with the success of our students, who are true ambassadors of our country. This success is due to the intensive work of several volunteers involved in the work of the Association, and the opportunity to participate in the competitions is given to us by the support of our supporters. With such a young team, students who have the right to participate in IOI in the following years as well, we can expect that next year we will have even greater results, and once again we will write history for Macedonia.”
Looking ahead, the Macedonian team is preparing for the Balkan Informatics Olympiad (BOI), which will be held in Ohrid from September 20 to 26, 2024. This event will see Macedonia host participants from 15 countries, providing another platform for showcasing their skills.
International Olympiad in Informatics
The IOI is one of the most prestigious international science competitions for high school students, focusing on IT skills such as problem analysis, algorithm and data structure design, programming, and testing. This year’s Olympiad was organized by the Arab Academy of Science, Technology and Maritime Transport (AASTMT) in collaboration with the Egyptian Ministries of Communications, Youth and Sports, and the Alexandria Library.
As Macedonia celebrates its achievements, the focus will now shift towards the upcoming challenges and opportunities, with a promising future for the nation’s young informaticists.
