Press Corps

Less than two weeks after the conclusion of the International History Olympiad, International Academic Competitions already has some news to report about the 2025 Olympiad. Here’s a preview of some of the changes that will be coming to the Olympiad the next time around: New Age Division for Youngest Students The 2023 Olympiad was the first in which students who had just completed 3rd grade were eligible to compete. With expected growth as IAC expands its outreach to 3rd and 4th grade teachers worldwide, we will [...]

Members of the Delegation from the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Education with the Executive Directors of the International History Olympiad, David and Nolwenn Madden Among the over 600 people in attendance at the 2023 International History Olympiad were members of a distinguished delegation from the Ministry of Education of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Over the course of four days, the delegation members attended various competitions, events, and ceremonies, and held discussions with Olympiad staff about how Saudi Arabian students can participate in future [...]

One of our favorite elements of the International History Olympiad is the opportunity to incorporate sites in our host cities into the program of competitions and activities. At past Olympiads, we have competed on the flight deck of the USS Intrepid in New York Harbor, held a sleepover on the battleship Missouri in Pearl Harbor, and held our Closing Ceremonies inside Charlottenburg Palace in Berlin. But no other city on earth provides quite the historic backdrop to a History Olympiad that Rome can – and we [...]

The 5th International History Olympiad took place in Rome, Italy from July 23-30 with 258 students in attendance, representing 30 US states, 20 other countries, and 4 territories. This was the largest Olympiad ever in terms of attending students, and was the first since 2018 to be held in Europe. St. Stephen's School was the host site for most of the competitions, though several finals were held in historic venues throughout the area, including inside the Colosseum (Roman History Bee), at St. Peter's Square (Catholic History [...]

International Academic Competitions is excited to announce that the 2023 International History Olympiad will now be held in Rome from July 23-31! Originally, the 2023 Olympiad had been slated to be held in Poland but due to geopolitical concerns, IAC has taken the decision to hold the Olympiad in Italy instead. The new draft calendar of events has been posted on the website here, where you can also find descriptions of each of the many individual components of the Olympiad. Highlights include numerous sightseeing opportunities, including [...]

At the 2022 International History Olympiad, one of the most anticipated events was the Country Exam: a multiple choice exam all about a particular country. Prior to the Olympiad, it was announced that the student who finished with the highest overall score across all four age divisions would win a free VIP trip to the country in question, and just before the Olympiad, it was announced that this would be Poland. After the Country Exam took place, the winning student was revealed at the Closing Ceremonies [...]

Since the first International History Olympiad was held in 2015, one of the highlights at each Olympiad are the final matches of the International History Bee World Championships. Very few people can ever lay claim to being a national champion in any endeavor - and far fewer people can ever claim a World Championship title. But in July 2022, four students achieved just that by becoming the first new International History Bee World Champions since the most recent Olympiad prior to it in 2018. Congratulations to [...]

The Closing Ceremonies of the 2022 International History Olympiad were held in a memorable and historic location – on the USS Intrepid in New York Harbor! Formerly one of the most battle-hardened ships of the US Navy (seeing service in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest engagement in modern naval history), the Intrepid has for decades been a museum ship with one of the most impressive collections of military and civilian aircraft in the world. You can view the video of the Closing Ceremonies on [...]

While all students were busy competing at the 2022 International History Olympiad, a number of students took some time to report on the competition as well. Their collective work as the International History Olympiad Press Corps is compiled here. You can also view the official video of the 2022 International History Olympiad, as part of our “At the Buzzer” series of videos from our Championship level events. In addition to student reporters, we also picked up press coverage from far and wide. Kenneth Silber, a journalist [...]

When Science and History get together, it is truly a powerful combo for IHO students. Here, students had the chance to learn more about scientific, technological, engineering, and mathematical history, while racing against their peers on the buzzer.  Whether it is ancient mathematics or the discovery of new tetraquarks at the Large Hadron Colliders, there was something for everyone. While many of the questions were tough, students continued to push themselves for a challenge and performed very well. Congratulations to all the awardees for their superior knowledge in the STEM field!!!  Elementary  Gold- [...]