Singapore students win 4 gold medals and tie with China for first place at biology Olympiad
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Four students from Singapore at the 2025 International Biology Olympiad held in the Philippines each won a gold medal.
PHOTO: MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
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SINGAPORE – Four students from Singapore each won a gold medal at an international biology competition, beating teams from 78 countries to tie for first place with China.
NUS High School of Math and Science student Nicholas Ng, 17, finished in fourth place and his schoolmate Mak Mun Yew, also 17, finished in fifth spot in individual rankings, with Chinese students taking the top three spots.
The other two gold medallists at the biology contest were NUS High student Raghav Kumar, 17, and Raffles Institution (RI) student Wang Yun Xi, 18.
Yun Xi plays netball for RI and is the team’s first choice for the centre position.
She did not play in the 2025 National School Games A Division netball final,
The annual biology Olympiad in 2025 was held in Quezon City in the Philippines from July 20 to 27. A total of 298 students took part in exams that tested their theoretical and practical knowledge in biology.
Speaking to The Straits Times after his return to Singapore, Nicholas said: “I was grateful to be given the opportunity to represent Singapore at this huge international gathering of biology students.”
Team Singapore fell sick during the event, but managed to stay the course and come out tops, said Nicholas, who hopes to be a dentist.
Singapore students also had a strong finish in the International Physics Olympiad, held in France from July 18 to 24. The five-member team bagged one gold and four silver medals, emerging joint 10th.
The Singapore delegates at the International Physics Olympiad held in France from July 18 to 24, 2025.
PHOTO: MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
Singapore’s only gold at the physics event was won by 17-year-old RI student Teo Kai Wen, who ranked 25th out of 440 participants.
Speaking to ST after his return to Singapore, Kai Wen said his biggest challenge at the Olympiad was getting enough sleep, especially with the long daylight hours in summer.
He added that he completed both the experimental and theoretical papers with about three to four hours of sleep, making him feel slightly stressed.
The others in the Singapore delegation were fellow RI student Matteo Jude Wee, 18, and NUS High students Eng Cheng Le, 17, Tan E-Jie, 18, and Raphael Teng, 18, who also took silver at the 2024 International Mathematical Olympiad.
The Ministry of Education, in a statement on Aug 27, congratulated all the students for their outstanding performances at the Olympiads, including the biology, chemistry, geography, mathematics, nuclear science, physics, artificial intelligence and informatics competitions, as well as the International Young Physicists’ Tournament.
