RIYADH: Three Saudi students have achieved advanced positions in the European Girls’ Mathematical Olympiad held in the Netherlands.

Thana Al-Haidari from Umm Salama secondary school in Makkah won the silver medal and Jude Bahwini from Tahfiz Al-Qur’an school in Yanbu took bronze in the competition. Meanwhile, Lara Jamil from Dar Jana International School in Jeddah received a certificate of appreciation.

The contest was held in the Dutch North Sea coast village of Egmond aan Zee between April 16 and 20 and remotely administered due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

Saudi Arabia’s participation was overseen by King Abdul Aziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba) and the Ministry of Education.

The students completed intensive study programs and were selected following training forums organized by Mawhiba.

The olympiad was launched to encourage female students’ involvement in mathematics, with 19 countries taking part in the first contest hosted by the University of Cambridge in 2012.

More than 50 countries now compete in the event, which is held annually in different European countries.

The Kingdom has taken part in every olympiad since 2012, collecting 15 awards, including two gold medals, four silver, six bronze and three certificates of appreciation.