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Queen Mary Students Compete at International Mathematics Competition in Bulgaria

Four undergraduate students from Queen Mary University of London's School of Mathematical Sciences travelled to Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria, this summer to represent the university at the International Mathematics Competition for University Students (IMC), the first time the university has entered a team in the competition. 

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Abdur Raheem Malik, Imran Bellioum, Oleksandr Paskal and Christopher Ian Williamson made up the team, competing from 27 July to 3 August 2026. They were accompanied by Sebastian del Baño Rollin, who served as the team's Academic Leader throughout the competition. 

The IMC brings together undergraduate mathematics students from universities across the world, testing them with challenging problems. It fosters an inclusive, safe, and supportive environment where participants can engage in challenging competitions, forge friendships with fellow mathematicians worldwide, and explore global employment prospects for those with mathematical expertise. 

For Queen Mary's four representatives, the trip offered a chance to test themselves against some of the strongest young mathematicians internationally, and to take part in a competition with a global community of participants. All four students were awarded certificates for their performance. 

Reflecting on the experience, Imran Bellioum said, "I'd simply say that it would definitely be the most memorable experience of my life. Being around arguably some of the smartest university students in the world is both a humbling and exciting experience." 

Imran said the competition's questions gave him a new perspective on what mathematics could involve. "The questions were also a really new insight into mathematics, realising that sometimes you don't even know what the question is asking. Being so used to a specific type of math with a fixed answer, having some questions take hours, with numerous tricks and techniques, was a really fresh insight into this field and opened my eyes entirely, and definitely boosted my appreciation." 

He also praised the ingenuity on display among competitors from other universities. "The level of creativity I've seen in others' approaches to questions was also very interesting." 

The School of Mathematical Sciences will build on this first appearance at the IMC, sending further teams to future editions of the competition. 

 

 

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