RIYADH: Saudi students won five medals and certificates at the International Physics Olympiad 2022, which was hosted in Switzerland from July 10 to 18. More than 360 students from 75 countries took part in the event, with the Kingdom being represented by the King Abdulaziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba). Medals and certificates of appreciation were won by five Saudi high school students following hours of training. Three senior high school students - Sadiq Al-Abbad, Jawad Al-Saif, and Lama Al-Ahdal - won silver and bronze medals. They received 2,385 hours of training. Certificates of appreciation were received by two junior high school students - Hussein Qadah and Muhammad Al-Barakat - after 1,775 hours of training. Mawhiba secretary-general Dr. Amal Al-Hazzaa said the country’s leadership had resulted in the excellence of Saudi students among developed countries at international forums and competitions. She congratulated the Ministry of Education, the students, their families, schools, and teachers for the achievement. Al-Hazzaa said the win reflected the strategic and integrated partnership between Mawhiba and the Ministry of Education and the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. She added that the win achieved the initiatives of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 and carved the path toward making Saudi Arabia among the top 20 countries globally for education and qualifications. “This is the third achievement (that) the Saudi physics team won over the past few months. There were previous achievements in the Asian Olympiad last May, and three awards were won in the North Baltic Olympics last April,” she said. The participation of the Saudi physics team at the Olympiad was supported by a Mawhiba program called The Talented Student Journey. It offers classes, summer programs, after-school learning, academic and research programs, and enrollment in top universities worldwide. The Kingdom now has 39 Olympiad prizes, including medals and certificates of appreciation. During the past decade, Saudi students have won more than 500 medals and other awards at Olympiads.