Press Release

(Hong Kong – 2 January 2014) According to Wong Yuk, the most difficult questions can usually be answered correctly, while the simplest questions are normally the trickiest and are easy to get wrong. His teammates jokingly said, “He spent only two hours completing a three-hour test paper and left the remaining one hour for sleeping.” Perhaps it is his candidness, gentleness and acuteness which has made him the most acclaimed one among those gifted students who won honours for Hong Kong in the International Junior Science Olympiad (IJSO).

Since winning two gold medals in the 10th IJSO (in both the Practical Event and the Individual Event), the best result among the six Hong Kong participants, Wong Yuk, a gifted student who is currently studying at Diocesan Boys’ School, has become a star in the school sector. In the sharing session during the toasting ceremony, he frankly admitted that he enjoyed being recognised as a gifted student as well as giving a brief and concise thank-you speech. “I have to thank the Hong Kong Academy for Gifted Education (HKAGE) for the programmes and training they have offered me, “ he said with modesty and gentleness. He and Gabriel Wong, another Hong Kong representative, are keen on participating in the face-to-face science and mathematics courses provided by the HKAGE and they have gained considerable benefits from the courses.

In fact, Wong Yuk began to shine since he transferred from G.T. (Ellen Yeung) College to Diocesan Boys’ School. In the HKAGE, he skipped from Grade 8 to Grade 10 due to his outstanding performance. No wonder all of the other five Hong Kong representatives to the I0th IJSO, including Gabriel Wong (La Salle College), Wu Wan-wei (St Paul's Co-educational College), Lai San-yu (Wa Ying College), Lau Chin-wa (Tin Ka Ping Secondary School) and Chau Ho-yin (Diocesan Boys' School), agree that Wong Yuk is the cream of the cream.

The IJSO, a general science competition for 15-year-old students, aims at promoting science education, reinforcing collaboration among science talents and providing a platform for nurturing the scientifically gifted students from different countries and regions. The 10th IJSO was held in Pune, India, from December 3 to 12, 2013, with about 250 scientifically gifted secondary students from 38 countries or regions participating in the event. A team of six Hong Kong secondary four students won the Best Practical Team (1st Place) Award and grabbed a total of five gold medals and four silver medals. The team has achieved the city's best ever results in the IJSO since Hong Kong joined the competition in 2006.

The HKAGE aims at providing more structured, articulated and challenging off-site programmes for students with exceptional talent, and promoting the concepts and practices of gifted education. Before the competition, the Academy ran an effective education training programme to further enhance the team members' self-understanding, communication and leadership skills.

Details of the competition are available at the website of the HKAGE(www.hkage.org.hk).

The awardees of the tenth IJSO was (from left to right) : Wong Yuk, Wu Wan-wei, Lai San-yu, Gabriel Wong Chun-hei, Lau Chin-wa and Chau Ho-yin