From the history of Mendeleev Olympiads
The International Mendeleev Chemistry Olympiad occupies a unique position among other top-level subject Olympiads for secondary school students. Chemists turned out to be the only community within natural sciences who managed to retain the traditions of the former All-Union Olympiad after the breakdown of the USSR. As a result, two new competitions are being held annually: the All-Russian and International Mendeleev Olympiads. The geographical scope and dynamics of the number of participants are given in the hereunder Table:
Since 2004, students from Bulgarian, North Macedonia, and Romania participate in the Mendeleev Olympiads beside students from CIS and Baltic countries. Many other countries joined the Olympiad in the subsequent years: Austria, Brazil, China, Croatia, Czeck Republic, Hungary, Israel, Iran, Mongolia, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, Syria, Turkey, and UAE.
Outstanding scientists, Full Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences A.L. Buchachenko, Yu.A. Zolotov, P.D. Sarkisov, professor Yu.A. Ustenyuk headed the Olympiad Organizing Committee and Jury. The full member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Dean of the MSU Chemistry Department in those years V.V. Lunin took charge of the Organizing Committee in 1997. It is due to his enormous efforts that chemists succeed in retaining and developing the former All-Union Olympiad.
Since 2022, the Organizing Committee is chaired by the Full Member and Vice-President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Scientific Advisor of the MSU Chemistry Department S.N. Kalmikov. Professor of the MSU Chemistry Department, Chair of the Division of Organic Chemistry V.G. Nenajdenko headed the Science Committee and International Jury from 2002 to 2023. Since 2023, professor of the MSU Chemistry Department A.K. Gladilin is in charge of these Olympiad bodies.
Professors of the leading Universities and school chemistry teachers from participating countries are involved in the work of the Organizing and Science Committees. Besides, undergraduate and Ph.D. students are invited into Science Committee, which allows upholding the Olympiad traditions and provides generational community.
Sponsors contribute to the Olympiad budget. The Melnichenko Charity Foundation is the Olympiad co-organizer, whereas the EuroChem Company is the general partner. Besides, governments and other organizations of hosting countries cover significant part of the expenditures.
Outstanding scientists, Full Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences A.L. Buchachenko, Yu.A. Zolotov, P.D. Sarkisov, professor Yu.A. Ustenyuk headed the Olympiad Organizing Committee and Jury. The full member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Dean of the MSU Chemistry Department in those years V.V. Lunin took charge of the Organizing Committee in 1997. It is due to his enormous efforts that chemists succeed in retaining and developing the former All-Union Olympiad.
Since 2022, the Organizing Committee is chaired by the Full Member and Vice-President of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Scientific Advisor of the MSU Chemistry Department S.N. Kalmikov. Professor of the MSU Chemistry Department, Chair of the Division of Organic Chemistry V.G. Nenajdenko headed the Science Committee and International Jury from 2002 to 2023. Since 2023, professor of the MSU Chemistry Department A.K. Gladilin is in charge of these Olympiad bodies.
Professors of the leading Universities and school chemistry teachers from participating countries are involved in the work of the Organizing and Science Committees. Besides, undergraduate and Ph.D. students are invited into Science Committee, which allows upholding the Olympiad traditions and provides generational community.
Sponsors contribute to the Olympiad budget. The Melnichenko Charity Foundation is the Olympiad co-organizer, whereas the EuroChem Company is the general partner. Besides, governments and other organizations of hosting countries cover significant part of the expenditures.
Since 2020, the Melnichenko Foundation has awarded the Academician Valery Lunin Prize, established in honor of the founder of the Mendeleev Olympiad, to the absolute winner of the IMO. In 2024, for the first time, the number of the awarded Prizes was increased to three.
- Valery Vasil’evich Lunin
(1940-2020)Valery Vasil’evich Lunin was an outstanding scientist, teacher and organizer of science, a person who headed the Faculty of Chemistry for more than 25 years (1992−2018), its first president, academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
The entire life of Valery Vasil’evich was closely connected with Lomonosov Moscow State University. In 1957, he entered the first year of the Faculty of Chemistry, where he went all the way from an engineer to a professor, head of the department, dean and president.
He took an active part in the preservation and development of chemical education in Russia. Over the years, a system has been created to attract the most gifted applicants from all over Russia, and a powerful international chemical olympiad movement has developed, in which Moscow University plays a major role. During the years of his deanship, new departments, laboratories and areas of work appeared; the old faculty traditions have been preserved and new ones have appeared. By the way, while still a fourth-year student, in 1966, V. V. Lunin was among the initiators of the holiday "200 Years of Hydrogen", predecessor of the now well-known Chemist’s Day.
Academician V. V. Lunin was an internationally recognized specialist in the field of heterogeneous catalysis and surface chemistry, the founder of scientific schools numbering hundreds of students and followers. Valery Vasil’evich headed the Department of Physical Chemistry until his last days.
His name is known to all chemistry teachers in Russia and the countries of the former USSR. Over the years of fruitful work, he has laid down traditions that will be supported and continued by his students and followers.
For graduates of the Faculty of Chemistry, he will forever remain in the memory as a sympathetic person and a leader who is always ready to listen, support and come to the rescue in a difficult situation.
Regulations summary
Secondary school students of graduate and pre-graduate years succeeded in national chemistry competitions take part in the Olympiad. All students despite age and school year get the same set of tasks.
The student quotas in the teams of the participating countries were decided at the joint meeting of the Organizing Committee and team mentors during the 38th International Mendeleev Olympiad on May 9, 2004 in Kishinev (Moldova). The quotas with amendments taken afterwards are given hereunder (note that the hosting country can have a bigger team with up to 15 students).
The student quotas in the teams of the participating countries were decided at the joint meeting of the Organizing Committee and team mentors during the 38th International Mendeleev Olympiad on May 9, 2004 in Kishinev (Moldova). The quotas with amendments taken afterwards are given hereunder (note that the hosting country can have a bigger team with up to 15 students).
Team quotas
Russian and English are the working languages of the Olympiad. If needed, team mentors have a possibility to translate the tasks into mother tongues on the eve of each exam.
The Olympiad includes three exams: the first theoretical (8 tasks, 10 points maximum each), the second theoretical (5 tasks on each student’s choice out of 15 tasks in the set, 15 points maximum for each task), and experimental (75 points maximum). The first exam tasks are of the difficulty similar to that of secondary school curricula with an advanced chemistry program, the second exam tasks are of a higher level. The second exam tasks are grouped into five sections: inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, analytical chemistry, physical chemistry, and life sciences and polymers (3 tasks in each section). The students are expected to solve 5 tasks, one from each section, showing their broad command of chemistry. The experimental exam (5 h) requires laboratory skills from students including those necessary to perform chemical analysis and synthesis following the given procedure. In total, students can get 230 points. By contrast to the International Chemistry Olympiad, there are no syllabus or set of preparatory problems at the Mendeleev Olympiad, thus students can expect any chemistry behind the competition tasks.
The Olympiad includes three exams: the first theoretical (8 tasks, 10 points maximum each), the second theoretical (5 tasks on each student’s choice out of 15 tasks in the set, 15 points maximum for each task), and experimental (75 points maximum). The first exam tasks are of the difficulty similar to that of secondary school curricula with an advanced chemistry program, the second exam tasks are of a higher level. The second exam tasks are grouped into five sections: inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, analytical chemistry, physical chemistry, and life sciences and polymers (3 tasks in each section). The students are expected to solve 5 tasks, one from each section, showing their broad command of chemistry. The experimental exam (5 h) requires laboratory skills from students including those necessary to perform chemical analysis and synthesis following the given procedure. In total, students can get 230 points. By contrast to the International Chemistry Olympiad, there are no syllabus or set of preparatory problems at the Mendeleev Olympiad, thus students can expect any chemistry behind the competition tasks.
Further information about the particular Mendeleev Olympiads can be found by exploring this website section year by year.