Four top students of the Singapore Chemistry Olympiad (SChO) competition were selected to represent Singapore at the 40th International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO), held from 12 to 21 July 2008 in Hungary. The winners also received the LANXESS Young Talent Chemistry Prize, sponsored by German specialty chemicals group LANXESS Pte Ltd.

The Singapore Chemistry Olympiad (SChO) is jointly organised by the Singapore National Institute of Chemistry (SNIC), the Chemistry Department of the National University of Singapore (NUS), and the Ministry of Education. The SChO acts as the first selection round to identify top young minds to compete at the yearly International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO). Started in 1989, the SChO provides a platform for talented chemistry students from various schools to engage in a two-day competition. Students undergo a grueling theory test and a practical test, which could last up to five hours each. This year, a total of 209 participants from 21 schools participated in the SChO.

To prepare for the international competition, the SChO winners made use of the laboratories at the Department of Chemistry at NUS, and were mentored by the lecturers at the university. So far, between 1988 and 2007, Singapore has won a total of 71 medals at the IChO, putting it on the top two spot for most medals received at the competition.

“As these students of Singapore are of exceptional quality and promise, I am confident that they will excel in the International Chemistry Olympiad in Hungary,” said Prof Andy Hor, Head of the Department of Chemistry at NUS and President of the Singapore National Institute of Chemistry.

NUS has named LANXESS the Exclusive Official Sponsor for 2008 which was held in November/December 2008.

“LANXESS views people as the driving force for our industry. For this reason, we constantly seek ways to engage the curiosity of our younger generation in the dynamic world of specialty chemicals as well as nurture the best minds in chemistry for the country,” said Mr. Ian Wood, Managing Director, LANXESS Pte Ltd.

In 2009, four winners of the Singapore Chemistry Olympiad (SChO) were selected to represent Singapore at the 41st International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO) which took place in Cambridge, United Kingdom. During the competition, in which 250 students from across the world participated, two members of the Singapore team unfortunately fell ill. However, the team persevered on and succeeded in winning two gold and two silver medals.

Back in Singapore, the successful students were rewarded with the LANXESS Young Talent Chemistry Prize from LANXESS, which has been the exclusive sponsor of SChO since 2008. The gold medallists each received S$ 500 in cash, while the silver medallists each received S$ 250 in cash. Ian Wood, Managing Director of LANXESS Pte Ltd, awarded the students their prizes at a prize presentation ceremony that was held on August 26,  2009 at the NUS Department of Chemistry.

Gold medallist Wang Daobo was elated by his victory and felt that winning the gold medal at such a prestigious platform was something to be proud of for Singapore, his school and his parents. The other gold medallist, Terry Gani Zhi Hao is 15 years old and was the youngest-ever participant to represent Singapore at the IChO: "Through the accelerated curriculum, I was able to get ahead of most of my peers by three years and I am now in the second year of junior college. I was surprised to attain the gold medal, and would like to thank my school and the the Chemistry Olympiad team members and mentors for their support and encouragement", he explained.