On Saturday, November 22, a total of 199 students participated in the first phase of the 8th Ecuadorian Physics Olympiad and the 23rd Inter-School Physics Competition. High school students took the exam simultaneously in seven cities across Ecuador.
In Guayaquil, the main venue was the Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL), where more than 130 students from various educational institutions participated. Additionally, 69 students from schools in other cities took the exam simultaneously at venues located in Cuenca, Loja, Portoviejo, Machala, Quevedo, and Quito.
During this first phase, participants were assessed on topics including Particle and Systems Mechanics, Rigid Body Mechanics, Fluid Mechanics, Thermodynamics, Oscillations and Waves, Electric Charge and Electric Fields, Electric Current, Magnetic Fields, Optics, and Advanced Physics.
The Physics Competition aims to promote the study of physics, highlight its cultural and academic significance, and identify emerging scientific talent in Ecuador. For educators, these competitions provide valuable opportunities to prepare students for future academic and professional challenges.
“It prepares them for the highest levels of academic rigor, so that from an early age—through pre-university studies and eventually university—they are ready to face these major challenges,” said Isaac Ronquillo, a teacher at Unidad Educativa Torremolinos.
Flavio Arguello, a teacher at the American School of Guayaquil, also emphasized the importance of the competition:
“It is important that students are given these opportunities to test what they are capable of achieving.”
In Phase 1 of the 2025 Physics Competitions, the 10 schools with the highest team scores will qualify for the next stage of the 23rd Inter-School Physics Competition. Likewise, the 40 students with the highest individual scores will advance in the 8th Ecuadorian Physics Olympiad 2025.
Phase 2 will take place on January 10, 2026.
