International Physics Olympiad (IPhO): Parent & Student Guide for IP Math/Physics Families

Q: What does International Physics Olympiad (IPhO): Parent & Student Guide for IP Math/Physics Families cover? A: What the IPhO is, how teams are selected, medal statistics, and how training aligns with IP tuition in Singapore.

TL;DR
The IPhO gathers many of the world's best pre-university physicists every July. Each country sends up to 5 students selected through multi-round national Olympiads; the top $8\%$ earn gold medals while honourable mentions extend recognition to about $67\%$ of participants. For IP students, Olympiad training supercharges conceptual depth and problem-solving speed that spill over into A-Level Physics and H2 Mathematics.

1 What is the IPhO?

• Founded: 1967 in Warsaw with 5 Eastern‑bloc countries present.
• Scale today: 80+ countries and ~400 contestants annually.
• Format: two 5‑hour exams - a 3‑question theory paper and a practical experiment - spaced one day apart under strict moderation rules.
• Team size: at most 5 students plus 2 leaders per country per statutes.

The content level stretches beyond H2 Physics, venturing into calculus-based mechanics, statistical thermodynamics and electromagnetic field theory.

2 Medal & Award Thresholds

Official regulations dictate a percentile cut-off system: