The results of the 2019 UK Chemistry Olympiad (UKChO) (China Division) have just been announced. Nearly 600 students from 126 national high schools and international schools have taken part in the competition. We are so proud of that our high school students won a global gold award and a global bronze award in such a fierce competition. They are Susanna Zheng (Global Gold award winner) from Grade 11 and Tina Zhou (Global Bronze award winner) from G12.

Susanna Zheng(L), Tutor: Ms Jing Wang(M), Tina Zhou(R)

The UK Chemistry Olympiad (UKChO) is hosted by the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). The RSC, with headquarters in London and Cambridge, is one of the world's most influential chemistry organisations. With over 54,000 members and an international publishing and knowledge business, they are the UK's professional body for chemical scientists, supporting and representing their members and bringing together chemical scientists from all over the world. The problems in the UK Chemistry Olympiad often stimulate a lot of debate, raising awareness of what chemistry is all about. It provides a great opportunity for the students to develop and showcase some of the skills they'll need in university and beyond.

Grade boundaries for each award are set according to standards by students from the UK. Scores from competitors in China received awards according to these grade boundaries. All papers are sent to the UK and graded by RSC-appointed examiners.

The level of difficulty of UKChO is very high. The questions require AS and A Level chemistry knowledge and the ability to apply this knowledge to new situations and problems in a creative way. The tutor Ms Jing and the students both actively prepared for the competition. In particular, Susanna Zheng, a student in G11, learned the Advanced Level chemistry ahead of the chemistry competition club. This laid a solid foundation for the excellent performance in the competition.