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RIYADH: The Saudi Informatics Team won six international medals at the 19th Junior Balkan Olympiad in Informatics (JBOI 2026) in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, with all six members of the Kingdom\u2019s team earning a medal in its first official participation in the competition.<\/p>\n
The Saudi students won four silver and two bronze medals at the event, which brought together about 90 participants from 13 countries, including Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, Moldova, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, T\u00fcrkiye, Ukraine, the UK and host Bosnia and Herzegovina.<\/p>\n
The silver medals went to Fares Yasser Al-Radadi of the General Administration of Education in Madinah, Hashem Ibrahim Basyouni of the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, and Riyadh-based students Ahmed Mohammed Al-Hussein and Eyad Emad Al-Khalifa. The bronze medals were won by Mohammed Abdulkhaleq Al-Battat of the Eastern Region Education Department and Al-Reem Ali Al-Mutawa of the Al-Ahsa Education Department.<\/p>\n
The achievement, reported by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), represents a 100 percent medal success rate for the Saudi delegation and comes as the Kingdom continues to expand its presence in international informatics competitions.<\/p>\n
Building on a strong year in informatics<\/strong><\/p>\n The JBOI result follows a series of strong performances by Saudi informatics students this year.<\/p>\n In September, the team won four international awards at the 33rd Balkan Olympiad in Informatics in Tirana, Albania, including the Kingdom\u2019s first silver medal in the competition. Saudi Arabia also secured two bronze medals and a certificate of appreciation, taking its overall BOI tally to 17 awards from four participations.<\/p>\n In August, the Saudi team won three awards at the 38th International Olympiad in Informatics in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Mohammed Nasser Al-Asmari won the Kingdom\u2019s first silver medal in IOI history, while Sultan Abdulrahman Al-Aiban won bronze and Saad Bandar Al-Arifi received a certificate of appreciation.<\/p>\n The IOI result raised Saudi Arabia\u2019s total in the competition to 14 international awards, comprising one silver medal, eight bronze medals and five certificates of appreciation.<\/p>\n The students competing at the JBOI underwent an extensive preparation and qualification process under the Mawhiba International Olympiad Program. Their training included specialized camps, selection competitions and simulation contests designed to assess their abilities, strengthen problem-solving skills and develop algorithmic thinking strategies.<\/p>\n The preparation journey can span two to four years, gradually developing students\u2019 abilities before they compete at regional and international levels.<\/p>\n Mawhiba\u2019s role in developing gifted students<\/strong><\/p>\n The program is implemented by the King Abdulaziz and His Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity (Mawhiba) in strategic partnership with the Ministry of Education.<\/p>\n Mawhiba is a nonprofit foundation dedicated to identifying, nurturing and empowering gifted students in Saudi Arabia and preparing them for advanced academic and scientific opportunities at the local and international levels. Its programs cover talent identification, academic enrichment, research and specialized preparation for international scientific competitions.<\/p>\n In 2025, more than 31,000 students benefited from Mawhiba programs, with more than 14,000 enrolled in academic and research initiatives. The foundation also reported that Saudi gifted students won 129 international awards across 26 Olympiads and the International Science and Engineering Fair that year.<\/p>\n The Junior Balkan Olympiad in Informatics is an annual competition focused on programming and algorithms for younger students. Launched in 2007 in Belgrade, Serbia, it brings together talented students from Balkan countries and invited participants from outside the region to develop their skills in computer science, logical thinking and problem-solving.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n