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Media Release – January 15, 2025
Canadian Mathematical Society

The 2024 Canadian Open Mathematics Challenge Results Are In

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OTTAWA, Ontario – The Canadian Mathematical Society (CMS) is delighted to share the results of the 2024 Canadian Open Mathematics Challenge (COMC). Over 6,300 students participated in the COMC on October 30, 2024. Competitors represented countries including Canada, the United States, China, South Korea, Hong Kong, India, Turkey, Thailand, Azerbaijan, New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom, Tunisia, Japan, Pakistan, Cambodia, and the Philippines.

The COMC is Canada’s premier mathematical competition. Top-performing students may be invited to participate in the Canadian Mathematical Olympiad (CMO) or the Qualifying Repêchage, providing them with an opportunity to earn a place on Math Team Canada. Team members can then compete in prestigious international events such as the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) or the European Girls’ Mathematical Olympiad (EGMO).

The Chair of the COMC committee, Dr. Robert Woodrow (University of Calgary), highlights the rigorous nature of this year’s competition:

The 2024 COMC presented challenging problems to students. In fact, no one wrote a perfect paper and the highest score was 78/80. Over 6300 papers were written including 672 papers from outside Canada.  Students from 17 countries participated. To be in the top 25% of students who wrote, you needed a score of at least 38.5. Markers of section C problems required careful arguments and presentations, resulting in some scores that were lower than students might have expected. We hope that students found the problems interesting and a good challenge.

This year, the median score for participants across all grades and locations was 26.5/80. Congratulations to all competitors! The CMS encourages students to compare their results with those of their peers rather than with those they may obtain during typical classroom math tests. Detailed statistics are available on the COMC website.

2024 COMC Results

Canadian Champions
(Students at schools in Canada or Canadian Citizens/Permanent Residents anywhere)

Gold
Warren Bei, Rockridge Secondary School (West Vancouver, BC)

Silver
Christopher Li, Olympiads School (North York, ON)
Zhekai Shen, Shanghai Foreign Language School Affiliated To Sisu (China)

Bronze
Jeremy Zhang, Richmond Hill High School (Richmond Hill, ON)

 

International Champions
(Students outside Canada who are not Canadian Citizens/Permanent Residents)

Gold
Kai Ming Ou, Guanghua Cambridge International School (China)

Silver
Lam To, Bergen County Academies (Hackensack, NJ, USA)

Bronze
Alex Zhan, Basis Independent Silicon Valley Upper (San Jose, CA, USA)

For more information on top scorers in each province and different grade levels, click here.

 

In addition to the valuable support received from the Society’s sponsors and academic partners, the CMS is also grateful for the support, participation and cooperation of all members, individual donors, as well as parents, teachers, schools and school boards.

The COMC is a prestigious exam and requires involvement by our university partners from coast to coast.  Whether they proctored, scanned and/or marked the exams, the CMS thanks the following institutions for their commitment to mathematical excellence in Canada:

  • University of British Columbia
  • University of Calgary
  • MacEwan University
  • University of Regina
  • University of Saskatchewan
  • University of Manitoba
  • University of Toronto
  • York University
  • Concordia University
  • University of Alberta
  • Université de Montréal
  • University of Ottawa
  • University of New Brunswick
  • University of P.E.I.
  • Dalhousie University
  • Memorial University
  • University of Windsor
  • Brock University
  • Western University

 

About the Canadian Open Mathematics Challenge (COMC)
The Canadian Open Mathematics Challenge (COMC) is Canada’s premier national mathematics competition open to any student with an interest in and grasp of high school math.  The purpose of the COMC is to encourage students to explore, discover, and learn more about mathematics and problem solving. The competition serves to provide teachers with a unique student enrichment activity during the fall term. It is the most prestigious math competition in Canada, and one of the most prestigious in the Americas. The COMC is the only way to be invited to the CMS’ free, exclusive training camps and compete internationally as part of Math Team Canada!

The very top-performing eligible COMC participants will be invited to participate in the Canadian Mathematical Olympiad (CMO) in March. Students can also qualify to write the CMO through the CMO Qualifying Repêchage which will take place from January 27th to February 3rd, 2025. Approximately 100 students are selected to write the CMO.  The best performing students at the CMO are then invited to represent Canada at the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) this July. The COMC also provides opportunities to be selected for the Canadian Team to the European Girls’ Mathematical Olympiad (EGMO).

 

About the Canadian Mathematical Society (CMS)
The Canadian Mathematical Society (CMS) is the main national organization whose goal is to promote and advance the discovery, learning and application of mathematics. The Society’s activities cover the whole spectrum of mathematics including meetings, research publications, and the promotion of excellence in mathematics competitions that recognize outstanding student achievements. The CMS is a registered non-profit, charitable organization and depends on grants, funding, and generous donations from sponsors, benefactors and community members to be able to carry out its activities.

 

For more information on the COMC, please contact:

Dr. Robert Woodrow (University of Calgary)
Chair, CMS-COMC Committee
woodrow@ucalgary.ca
or                                 Dr. Termeh Kousha
Executive Director, CMS
tkousha@cms.math.ca