Bronze for BG at the Olympics in Amsterdam
A student report
It was a random Tuesday in the fifth module that we were first introduced to the Olympiad. A Dutch team competition, we were told, in creative mathematics, in which BG has a tradition of doing quite well.
Of course, it would be nice if the school could provide a team again this year, and since this year's Intermath team only consisted of us four students, Aksel, Jakob, Katrine and Hans Christian, it was clear that this task lay on our shoulders. With the promise of a potential paid trip, we agreed to participate in the initial round in Denmark. Before we knew it, we had finished second and were now in the Netherlands to take part in the final.
We had quickly decided to make more out of the trip than just the competition, so even though the Olympics did not start until Friday morning, our plane was already setting wheels on the runway at Schiphol Amsterdam on Tuesday afternoon. Precisely in Amsterdam, we first spent three days soaking up Dutch culture and traditions, while at the same time ensuring that the team was well shaken together. Among other things, we visited the original Heineken brewery in the center of Amsterdam, and we sailed on the city's famous canal network that connects all parts of the city with each other.
Friday morning the program started, so we met in the conference center lounge, where we were introduced to the competition judging committee. Here we had the opportunity to look at our competitors for the first time. We knew in advance that the winner of the Danish competition, HTX Køge, would participate, and in addition Croatia, Germany, Holland and Japan were each represented with a couple of teams. The latter in particular looked extremely competent.
The problem was presented: optimize ambulance operations in the fictional city of Amberhavn. The concept in the Olympiad is that you get 24 hours to answer the problem with a large written task, so after the introduction the teams went their separate ways and we started writing. The next day we spent alternately working on the project and eating with the other participants in the main building.
18 pages, an unknown number of Dutch waffles and quite a few ups and downs later, we were ready to submit. Unaware of the result, our efforts turned four-leaf clovers, noses back home, and when we set foot again at Kastrup Airport on Saturday evening, all four of us had become a lot wiser and a great experience richer. In mid-April, a message about the competition's rankings arrived. We had come in third place, beaten at the finish line by a group of Japanese and our national rivals from HTX Køge. All in all, a result and a podium position that we are quite satisfied with.
Written by Aksel Johannes Hovgaard Heunicke (3x), Hans Christian Nørgaard Hansen (3n), Jakob Mølholm Malle (3x) and Katrine Davis Bonefeld (3n)