Sometimes we lose more from indecision than we do from unsuccessful actions. To try and fail always seems to have better rewards than to overthink an idea to its death.
We can only be certain of what's done not what could have been done.
@abitheallen@1dani__ The better answer to where do you work wouldn't be "I work remotely ". I agree that they could have probed further if they indeed needed more details and I also agree that working remotely should not be a justification to cut anyone off.
@Eliz_xoxo1@TheDreamjunkie_ Every privilege is conditioned on the very thing for which one is privileged. A wealthy man's privilege is conditioned on his wealth, a beautiful woman's ....on her beauty. Every privilege is conditional. Point is: it is in the nature of privileges to be conditional.
@emperor_wizzi@kafiradikalis Lol, this sounds like the argument some 7th day Adventist boys used to make against the Catholic church in those Uni days ๐
@zaynchd@plasticolicious@VictorO52946464@FormuMix Zayn, we usually see what we want to see.
There's probably no explanation that would suffice if somewhere in your heart, you believe Argentina was unduly favoured.
Setting the record straight:
International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO), Pan African Mathematical Olympiad (PAMO), European Girls' Mathematical Olympiad (EGMO), ISTEM in Rome 2026.
Misconception number 1: The International STEM Olympiad (ISTEM) that students went for in Rome is different from the IMO in China that Nigeria couldn't go to.
The IMO and PAMO are the most prestigious Mathematical Olympiads that Nigeria sends teams to. The selection process for this two is mostly the same as in the past Nigeria has fielded the same teams to IMO and PAMO. The National Mathematical Centre Kwali Abuja (NMC) is the government body in charge of registering a team for these Olympiads. Why do we need a government agency you might ask? This is because this competitions are the academic equivalent of Olympics and you have to participate as a country, not an individual. Countries have only 6 slots for the team. This is part of the reasons why it is more prestigious than these recent Olympias like ISTEM. Over the years, different private organisations have used the name Olympiads to denote their competitions. There questions are a far cry, in terms of difficulty, compared to the traditional Olympiads which require proofs. Also, unlike traditional Olympiads where contesting is on a national level, some of the new Olympiads are open to anyone to participate in as an individual provided you register on time and you have the money (which is usually significant).
Misconception number 2: This year, Samuel Famiroju was among the people that qualified for the IMO in China but could not go due to funding.
Samuel qualifying is false. The NMC organises a 3-4 stage Nigerian Mathematical Olympiad. This is totally different from what Alex Onyia organised with the South East Mathematics Olympiad or what Nigerian Tulip International College organises in collaboration with NMC (an Annual Mathematics Contest). The latter is the contest Samuel is believed to have won which is not involved in the selection process for the Nigerian IMO team. The selection process involves State Rounds and National Rounds. In the past, NMC has organised the contests and sent teams to various Olympiads (like PAMO this year in Ivory Coast) but funding issues threaten that now. While Samuel Famiroju did not qualify, here are some of those that did - Agbo Adoga, Ikenna Enwere and Damaris Oyerinde. The last two also went for the PAMO (as eluded to earlier, PAMO and IMO have virtually the same selection process in Nigeria)
Misconception number 3: Alex Onyia did not select Samuel Famiroju because he is Yoruba.
While I do not agree with the tag of best mathematician in the country Alex ascribes to his student, he held a transparent competition to select the students he went with to Rome. He has consistently said this. Those of us who followed the competition saw the winners emerge and Samuel Famiroju was not part. Alex has also never stated that his competition is only for Igbos, he said it is open to any student in the South East provided they are in the appropriate grades.
Misconception number 4: Ambassadors College sent a student to ISTEM in France earlier this year, 2026.
This is flat out incorrect. First of all, there was never any ISTEM in France earlier this year. The competition the student went for is EGMO. Special Maths Academy (SMA) (@SpecialMaths) has always publicised how the Special Maths Contest will be the main selection criteria for the EGMO. EGMO, just like the IMO and PAMO is not open to private individuals. To pull this off, we had to work with National Mathematical Centre, to get consent, as required. There will be another Special Maths Contest to select students for next EGMO in Croatia, so stay tuned.
Share this post to defeat the disinformation flying around.