Top in UK, seventh in world: Tonbridge teams excel in international Physics contest
Two Tonbridge teams achieved the status of ‘Top in the UK’ after putting in impressive performances in the International Physics Brawl.
Nearly 200 teams, from schools across the world, competed in this annual online event which tests Physics knowledge and problem-solving skills. Each team, of either four or five members of mostly Sixth Form age, is set the challenge of answering a series of questions under time pressure.
The Tonbridge boys named the best UK team in the Lower Sixth age category were also ranked seventh in the world.
The boys who were the highest ranked UK team in the Upper Sixth category finished 34th in the world positions.
Overall Tonbridge fielded nine teams, with a total of 45 boys taking part in the contest, which took place on Wednesday 24 November.
Chris Powell, Head of Physics, said: “Super-curricular activities such as the International Physics Brawl give our students opportunities to excel and be exposed to the subject outside of taught lessons, adding valuable depth and breadth to their experience.
“We saw plenty of strong performances, and huge credit must go to our team finishing seventh in the world, which is a fine achievement. We think they may well be the best performing team, taking into account their age, that we have ever had, and so it is an exciting prospect that these students may have another chance to shine in the Physics Brawl next year.”
The Tonbridge team (named ‘SMH in SHM’) which achieved seventh in the world, and was the best UK team in its age category (Lower Sixth), consisted of Isaac King (CH4), Webb Wu (PS4), Justin Leung (HS4), Eden Cheung (FH4) and Nathan Tay (Sc4).
The members of Team ‘Where is Chris?’, which was the best UK team in the Upper Sixth category, were Ollie Whittall (SH5), Hayden Lam (FH5), Adrian Lam (JH5), Hugh O’Donnell (PH5) and Thomas Gardner (CH5).
The International Physics Brawl is organised by Charles University, a renowned institution in the Czech Republic.
Tonbridge teams are pictured competing in the School’s state-of-the-art, RIBA Award-winning Barton Science Centre.
