Iran ranked first in the world in the 15th International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA 2022) held at Kutaisi in Georgia from August 14 to 22.

The Iranian team won first place in the tournament for the second time by winning 9 gold medals and 1 silver medal. 250 students from 45 countries participated in this competition.

Mehdi Ostad Mohammadi, Sepehr Salamat, Mohammad Mehdi Abedian, Farhad Azizi Satari, Seyed Yousef Miryousefi, Sahand Esmailzadeh, Sahand Akramipour, Aria Ghanbari, and Arsam Majd won the gold medals and Alireza Alaei Hareh Dasht won the silver medal.

In IOAA 2021, the Iranian delegation won 2 gold medals, 5 silver medals, 2 bronze medals, and an honorary diploma at the competition, held in Colombia on November 14-21.

International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics is an annual event for highly performed high school students from all around the world.

Established in Thailand in 2006, it was initiated by five countries including Thailand, Indonesia, Iran, China, and Poland with the aim to proliferate astronomy among high school students.

The main goal of the IOAA is to promote the growing interest in Astronomy and related STEM subjects, especially through the general education of young people, and to enhance the development of international contacts among different countries in promoting Astronomy and Astrophysics in schools.

Over the past Iranian calendar year, which ended on March 20, Iranian students won seven gold medals, 11 silver medals, and nine bronze medals at different international Olympiads.