Sixteen Filipino students, who are part of the 2006 Mathematics Trainers' Guild (MTG) Philippine Delegation to International Mathematics Competitions, are currently in Hong Kong, China to represent the country in th Po Leung Kuk 10th Primary Mathematics World Competition (PMWC). Sponsored by the Po Leung Kuk Organization, the PMWC is one of the premiere international math competitions for elementary students.

The sixteen Philippine delegates are in Hong Kong from July 17 to 21. They are expected to go toe-to-toe with more than 40 international teams from countries like Australia, Bulgaria, China, Japan, Singapore, and the United States.

The Philippine representatives to the Po Leung Kuk 10th PMWC are:

Arvin Wilson Alba - gr. 6, San Beda College, Alabang
Elvis Jeremy Ayroso - 1st yr., Philippine Science High School
Darwin Ivan Carrasco - 1st yr., Las Pinas East National High School
Arielle Elise Chua - 1st yr., St. Jude Catholic School
Paula Micah Chua - 1st yr., Dee Hwa Liong Academy
Marc Terrence Co - gr. 7, Xavier School
Brendon Matthew Go - gr. 5, Xavier School
Vance Eldric Go - gr. 6, St. Jude Catholic School
Immanuel Encarnacion - 1st yr., Philippine Scence High School
Carmela Antoinette Lao - gr. 6, St. Jude Catholic School
Maria Socorro Kristina Medina - 1st yr., Philippine Science High School
Michael Ongkauko - gr. 6, Xavier School
Aldric Cristoval Reyes - 1st yr., Chiang Kai Shek College
Fred Nyll Tupas - 1st yr., West Visayas State University
Zheng Rong Wu - 1st yr., Zamboanga Chung Hua High School
Ryan Yu - gr. 7, Xavier School

The PMWC has both an individual and team contest. The individual portion consists of fifteen short answer questions to be solved within ninety minutes. Short answer questions do not require solutions. The team portion meanwhile, consists of ten short answer questions. Eight are to be divided among the team members and solved individually within forty-five minutes, while two are to be solved together for fifteen minutes.

For the individual competition, awards are given to the top half of the participants. The top 1/12 gets 1st Honors, the next 2/12 get 2nd Honors, and the next 3/12 get 3rd Honors. For the team competition, teams are first randomly bracketed into groups of around eight to ten teams. Teams within the same group then compete against each other, and the top three teams in each group are awarded Champion, 1st runner-up, and 2nd runner-up trophies. Fourth and fifth place teams get merit awards.

The MTG has been sending participants to the PMWC ever since its inception in 1997. In fact, the PMWC is the international contest that the MTG has participated in the most number of times. Last year, the Philippine delegation turned in a good performance, bagging one 2nd Honors and six 3rd Honors certificates in the individual competition, and a 1st runner-up trophy and a merit award in the team contest. The 2nd Honors certificate was courtesy of Carmela Antoinette Lao of St. Jude Catholic School, while the 1st runner-up trophy was won by the team of Carmela Lao, Aldric Cristoval Reyes of Chiang Kai Shek College, Aileen Giselle Chua of Grace Christian High School, and Vance Mikhail Uy of St. Jude. Lao and Reyes are back again in this year's PMWC roster.

Hopefully, the recent successes that other MTG Kids have achieved in contests like the Invitational World Youth Mathematics Intercity Competition (IWYMIC) and the Indonesia Elementary Mathematics International Contest (InaEMIC) would inspire our sixteen Philippine representatives so that they would do their best and emerge victorious in this contest.