Junior Physicists Shine in National Competition

Shiplake College physicists have achieved outstanding success in this year's British Physics Olympiad (BPhO) competitions, with students in both Year 7/8 and Year 10 earning an impressive collection of medals.

The Year 7 & 8 Physics Challenge, taken by around 10,000 students nationwide, saw seven Shiplake students put their physics knowledge and problem-solving skills to the test. Every student who entered achieved a medal-winning result, with Audrey Edimoh securing a coveted Gold Award.

In the Junior Physics Challenge, aimed primarily at Year 10 students and taken by approximately 15,000 students across the UK, 14 Shiplake students competed. The College celebrated an excellent set of results, including Gold Awards for Charlie Newman, Austin Mason and Harry Perkins.

Both competitions are organised by the British Physics Olympiad and are designed to encourage students of all abilities to engage with physics in a fun and challenging way. Each challenge consists of two 25-minute online papers featuring questions on topics including dynamics, electricity, optics, heat, astronomy, waves and general scientific knowledge. For Year 10 students, many of the questions are linked to the GCSE Physics curriculum while also rewarding a wider interest in the subject.

Reflecting on the students' achievements, Dr Maya Balasubramanyam, Head of Physics, said: "We are very proud of the students who took part in the Olympiad this year. We had a fantastic set of results, including four gold medals. The competitions provide an excellent opportunity for students to stretch their thinking beyond the classroom, and it was wonderful to see so many of our pupils embrace the challenge and achieve such impressive outcomes."

Congratulations to all participants

Year 7 & 8 Physics Challenge

Gold

• Audrey Edimoh

Silver

• Jack Scofield
• Vasylysa Nistratova
• George Hollins
• L Roberts

Bronze

• Max Fielder

Year 10 Junior Physics Challenge

Gold

• Charlie Newman
• Austin Mason
• Harry Perkins

Silver

• George Dallas
• Toby Lane
• Maksim Sergeev
• Alfred Richardson

Bronze

• Mortimer Britton
• Oliver Thorpe
• Danny Petrov
• Henry Lawrence
• Matthew Lane

Commendation

• Zack Roberts
• C Green

Congratulations to all students for their fantastic achievements and for representing Shiplake College so successfully in these national competitions.