Maths stars from nine high schools gathered at University College of the Cayman Islands last week to test their calculation and puzzle-solving skills at the tenth annual Minds Inspired Maths Challenge.  

Two overall winners emerged victorious with Daniel Suico lifting the trophy in the Junior age-group and Michael Marzouca champion of the Senior competition.  Cayman International School won the Junior school team prize for a second year running. 

The Junior Maths Challenge took place on Thursday 17 November with 83 students aged 11-14 taking part. The first round was an individual challenge, the second round was a scavenger hunt in which school teams raced to solve maths puzzles, and the final round mixed teams from different schools.  

On Friday 18 November, it was the turn of 89 students aged 15-18 to compete in the Senior Maths Challenge with individual and mixed team rounds, rewarding participants for teamwork as well as knowledge.  

Dart Chief Financial Officer Ben Cullen, who presented prizes to the senior group, said, “As a maths graduate and someone who has built a career in mathematics, it’s exciting to see the next generation engaging so enthusiastically with the subject. I hope many of these bright young minds will choose to continue to take their studies of mathematics to the next level, it teaches problem-solving skills that are needed in any career.”

In addition to the challenge, seniors also heard from a guest speaker from Bullish, a digital assets subsidiary of Cayman-based B1 (Block.one), who demonstrated to students how mathematics is employed in various job opportunities in tech-focused industries.

Dart launched the Minds Inspired Maths Challenge in 2013 initially for upper grade students and added the junior level to meet demand from students and teachers. Last year, the tournament had to be rescheduled and the format changed to accommodate COVID-19 restrictions, so this year’s event was a welcome return to in-person gathering of students which encourages healthy competition between individuals and teams.

Schools participating in this year’s Maths Challenge were John Gray High School, Clifton Hunter High School, Layman E. Scott High School, Cayman Prep & High School, St. Ignatius Catholic School, Cayman International School, Grace Christian Academy, Triple C School and Clever Fish. 

Full results for the Minds Inspired Maths Challenge 2022 are as follows:

Junior Challenge

Overall winner: Daniel Suico, St. Ignatius Catholic School 

Individual: Year 9: Daniel Suico, St. Ignatius Catholic School; Year 8: Julio Aurelio, St. Ignatius Catholic School; Year 7: Nina de Saram, Cayman Prep & High School

School team: Cayman International School 

Mixed team: Alex Irons, Clever Fish; Ikenna Eleweanya, John Gray High School; Suwayne Young Watson, Layman E. Scott High School 

Senior Challenge

Overall winner: Michael Marzouca, St. Ignatius Catholic School

Individual: Year 10: James Lymbery, Clever Fish; Year 11: Toby Johns, Cayman International School; Year 12: Will Sellars, Cayman Prep and High School; Year 13: Michael Marzouca, St. Ignatius Catholic School. 

Mixed team: Sadie Seerattan, John Gray High School; Nadia Levy, Cayman Prep & High School; Michael Marzouca, St. Ignatius Catholic School.  

About Minds Inspired

Minds Inspired is a Dart initiative that uses innovative and exciting programmes, activities and awards to encourage Cayman’s youth to embrace STEM subjects. An annual calendar of events, including FIRST Tech Challenge, SeaPerch underwater robotics competition, the Math Challenge and Dart’s summer Work-X programme, provides unique STEM learning experiences that develop creative thinkers and problem solvers.  For more information, visit www.mindsinspired.ky