Photo from Nathan Neria

by Alexia Bangayan

On Sunday, July 19, the Ateneo de Manila Senior High School (ASHS) Batch 2026 alumnus Nathan Gabriel Neria of 12-Miki clinched a bronze medal in the 67th International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO), held in Shanghai, China.

Neria was among the six students who represented the Philippines in the mathematics competition alongside the following members:

• Silver Medalist: Jerome Austin Te of Jubilee Christian Academy 
• Bronze Medalist: Alessandro Albani of Philippine Science High School – Main Campus
• Honourable Mention: Zion Skye Earl Carmelo Uy of Philippine Science High School – Main Campus

Also comprising the Philippine delegation were Mateo Inigo Espocia of Philippine Science High School – Main Campus and Shaun Lawrence Poh Leung of St. Stephen’s High School.

Leading the delegation were team leader Richard Eden and deputy team leader Kerish Villegas, both members of the faculty of the Ateneo de Manila University.

The country’s participation was spearheaded by the Mathematical Society of the Philippines (MSP) and the Science Education Institute of the Department of Science and Technology (SEI-DOST).

Reflecting on the achievement, Neria said that representing both the country and the Ateneo community made the experience especially meaningful.

”It also motivated me to do my best because I knew I was representing something bigger than myself,” he added.

Neria also shared that the experience reinforced what he already wanted to pursue and made him more interested in learning and taking on new challenges.

”It also gave me more confidence in my abilities and encouraged me to keep working hard toward my goals while staying open to new opportunities in the future,” he stressed.