The Western Cape has once again dominated the 2014 South African Programming Olympiad.
Peter Waker, speaking at awards function in Cape Town this week, comments on how multi-talented the winners are. “The public perception is that a star computer programmer must be a nerd who sits in front of a keyboard all day and can do nothing else. They are wrong.”
Gold medal winner, Thomas Orton from Bishops in Rondebosch, is a regular participant in the national Science Olympiad, where he won the Physics section. He is also a regular participant in the English Olympiad and a finalist in the National Debating Competition. While Thomas is a full-time learner at Bishops, he is also a part-time student at UCT.
Silver medal winner, Ulrik de Muelenaere, is a grade 11 learner from Waterkloof High in Gauteng. He enjoys participation in the Robotics Olympiad – getting through to the World Championships in 2013.
The other silver medal winner, Robin Visser of grade 12 at St George’s Grammar School in Mowbray, came first in the UCT Maths Olympiad for five years running and has won two bronze medals in the International Maths Olympiad. This year he was the top learner in the South African Maths Olympiad; getting 100% – only the second time in the history of the Maths Olympiad this has happened.
Bronze medals winner Ural Jonathan Alp, a grade 12 learner at Parklands College in Cape Town, participated in the English Olympiad twice, in the UCT Maths Olympiad five times and in the South African Maths Olympiad six times.
Yaseen Mowzer, also a bronze medal winner, is in grade 10 at Fairbairn College in Goodwood, and won an honourable mention at the 2014 International Mathematics Olympiad.
The third bronze medal went to Laurens Weyn, a grade 11 learner at Abbotts College, Century Gate in Cape Town. He is a “Minecraft” devotee, using it to build a virtual computer including the operating system and a programming language.
Runners-up in the competition are Ashim Asharaph of Sol Plaatje Secondary; Frederik du Toit of Hoërskool Centurion; Scott Hallauer of Reddam House; Pieter Kok of Hoërskool Centurion; Ralph McDougall of Curro Durbanville; Tae Jun Park of Rondebosch Boys; Matthew Poulter of Rondebosch Boys; Sanjiv Ranchod of Westerford High; Bronson Rudner of SACS; Reuben Steenekamp of Reddam House; and Jeremy Wilkinson of Bishops.
