Nepali students secure historic gold at international astronomy olympiad

KATHMANDU: Nepali students won a gold medal, a bronze medal and an honourable mention at the Fifth International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics – Junior (IOAA-JR 2026). The competition was held in Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand, from November 1 to 8 and marked Nepal's best-ever performance at the event.

Shahwaz Alam won the gold medal for Nepal, while Sahaj KC secured a bronze medal and Ivan Dubey received an honourable mention. Abhyuday Dhungana and Akhilesh Pokharel were the other members of the Nepali team.

Nepal Astronomical Society (NASO) President Suresh Bhattarai said the results marked an unprecedented achievement for Nepal in the competition. NASO said Alam's gold medal was the first won by a Nepali student at an international science olympiad.

According to NASO, the competition brought together young astronomy and astrophysics students from around the world.

NASO said the achievement builds on Nepal's previous bronze-medal successes in international astronomy competitions and demonstrates that Nepali students can compete at the highest international level.

The students were selected through a competitive process and underwent specialised training at the National Astronomy Olympiad 2026 closed camp organised by NASO before travelling to Thailand.

The Nepali delegation was led by NASO representatives Manisha Dwa and Ocean Sharma Kattel.

(With inputs from RSS)