Final Weekend Mathematic Alympiad

On March 15 and 16, 2024, ten teams of three or four students competed in Garderen for honors in the international final of the Mathematical Alympiad.
This year’s final assignment had its origins in a plenary lecture held at the NWD in 2022, in which Sandjai Bhulai (VU, Amsterdam) showed how mathematical models can help solve social problems. His lecture was more specific about the optimal placement of a limited number of ambulances in an area. It is important, among other things, that if an accident occurs, the nearest ambulance will of course go there. But at the same time, it is wise for the other (still available) ambulances to redistribute themselves across the area in order to respond as adequately as possible in the event of any new accidents. This fact was analyzed in modeled form by the ten final teams (three from the Netherlands, two from Germany, two from Denmark, two from Japan and one from Croatia).
During the final presentation, the strategy chosen by the teams had to be tested for feasibility on the basis of a ‘live’ situation, in which a number of accidents were simulated in a fictitious area (located, of course, near the city of Amberhavn). In the end, one of the Japanese teams managed to claim first place, followed by two teams from Denmark. However, the organization congratulates all participating teams, because by reaching the international final they have already achieved something exceptional!