Croatian secondary school students won one silver and five bronze medals at the 21st International Junior Science Olympiad, held in Bucharest from 2 to 12 December.

The competition involved over 300 students from 52 countries. Croatian participants tackled two theoretical tests and one experimental test, according to a statement from the Faculty of Science of the University of Zagreb.

Ana Piros from Osijek’s III. Gimnazija won the silver medal. Five students from Zagreb earned bronze medals: Tamara Bracko from the Vladimir Prelog School of Natural Sciences, Adrian Gansel and Márton Guzsvány from XV. Gimnazija, Davor Sokac from I. Gimnazija, and Matej Zajec from V. Gimnazija.

The selection process for Croatian participants at the Olympiad takes place through a system of school, county, and national competitions, organised and led by the Education Agency and national committees for specific scientific disciplines.

Students who achieve the best results at national competitions in physics, chemistry, and biology are invited to join the national team for the Olympiad. Testing is conducted by mentors from the Faculty of Science, which also hosts preparatory sessions for the competition.

The mentors involved in selecting and preparing students and translating tasks during the competition are staff members of Zagreb’s Faculty of Science: Petra Cvjetko from the Department of Biology, Djani Skalamera from the Department of Chemistry, and Karolina Matejak Cvenic from the Department of Physics.