An 11th-grade student, Dang Huy Hau, has topped the national team selection round for the Asia-Pacific Informatics Olympiad, scoring 468.95 out of 600 points after two days of intense competition. Teacher Dao Manh Trinh, Principal of Thang Long High School for the Gifted, Lam Dong, confirmed this on the afternoon of March 27.

Last year, as a 10th-grade student, Hau topped the national informatics exam for gifted students. He then won silver medals at both the Asia-Pacific Informatics Olympiad (APIO) and the International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI).

"I am overjoyed! I had great faith in Hau, so I am not surprised by this result," said teacher Trinh. He praised Hau as a rare talent in the school's history of education. Over the past three months, the school invested in sending Hau to Hanoi for intensive training with informatics experts.

Dang Huy Hau, an 11th-grade student from Thang Long High School for the Gifted, Lam Dong. *Photo: School provided*

The Ministry of Education and Training organized the national team selection exam for international and regional Olympiads on March 26-27. The informatics subject featured 38 contestants, all top performers from the national gifted student exam, with most being 12th-grade students. Each day's exam comprised three problems to be completed within five hours, with each problem worth 100 points. Notably, this was the only subject exam where contestants' scores were publicly displayed immediately after the testing period.

Hau and 14 other leading students will continue their training at the University of Engineering and Technology, Vietnam National University, Hanoi. This preparation is for the upcoming Asia-Pacific Informatics Olympiad (APIO), scheduled for next May. Following the APIO results, the Ministry will select four contestants to represent Vietnam at the International Olympiad in Informatics (IOI) in early July in Uzbekistan.

Le Nguyen