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From Passion to Victory: Yohanes Arya, The winner of Python olympiads 2025

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The recently conducted Python Olympiads 2025 by GEMA Education was won by Yohanes Arya Prasteyuda, who studies in Indonesia. He has been very passionate and interested in coding since grade 8 and this is what makes him different from others. He has a keen interest in Python and Lua and has participated in various competitions too. He enjoys coding as an interactive experience and a game rather than a career oriented skill. Talking about how his interest began in coding and programming, he shares that he first was interested in Python when he realised how versatile it is as a coding language. He started exploring graphical user interfaces using libraries too. He also stated how Python can transform imagination into something tangible. Motivation and Preparation When asked about his motivation to participate in the Olympiad he tells us that first his friend mentioned there was a competition that focuses on Python programming he decided to take the initiative to participate. He had a little experience in Python during that time and saw the Olympiad as an opportunity to apply his skills and express his gratuity through code. His preparation basically started with reviewing the competition criteria, understanding the expectations for his category and once he had a clear vision he started envisioning the type of content he wanted to create. He planned the outline and ensured it aligned with the given guidelines. He also made a schedule to dedicate what days he would work on what part. Obstacles When the interviewer asked about the challenges he faced during preparation, Arya answered that he struggled with consistent motivation, there were days he felt inspired and motivated but there were also days he felt like giving up. He also dealt with frustration during unexpected errors in the code. The key is to never give up and keep working, and that’s how you win. He found the process testing his patience but also it taught him resilience and kept him working hard and worth it. He finds the field of Artificial Intelligence, particularly neural networks, to be the most fascinating part of python. He talks about a game where AI is used to record the players data and behaviour for the game. He looks forward to exploring more about the application of AI in robotics. Yohanes prefers to work on his projects alone as it helps him focus and process his thoughts clearly and deeply without distractions. Other Interests Other than Python and coding, Arya loved to play with Lego as a child and he also exercises everyday to refresh himself after long hours of studying. Talking about his ideals and motivations, he talks about J. Robert Oppenheimer and Alan Turing, he is always fascinated to watch films about their life and it inspires him. Future goals About his future, Arya says he will most likely pursue Python and he is currently also learning C++. In the future he would love to explore the application of pythons in different fields to make it more interactive. Lastly he would advise students to carefully review the competition criteria, guidelines and plan accordingly.

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Python and Piano: How Nicholas Juggles Coding and Life

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Recently, Nicholas Sandjada, an eight grader took home the consolation prize for the Python Olympiads 2025. In an interview with GEMA—who hosted the competition—Sandjada opened up and shared insights about his thoughts, interests, and experience regarding the Python Olympiads. As someone who claims to be creative with technology, Nicholas had developed an interest in programming since he was ten which led him to take part in coding classes which only made him love it more. “I wanted to challenge myself.” Nicholas said his motivation for joining the competition was his desire to challenge his own skills by competing with others that loved coding just as much as him. For preparations, Nicholas practiced coding problems, reviewed his Python basics and applied them to his own programs and also learned new skills for his project entirely overcoming his biggest problem of figuring out how to make his project easy to understand. He talked about his love for variables, operations, loops, and conditional programs to make his projects better even confessing that coding the order of operations for his project was his proudest moment during the contest. Tech Role Model Apart from coding, Nicholas plays the piano, reads and enjoys solving math problems. His biggest inspiration is Steve Jobs, whose creativity and technology has significantly changed the world. Winning this Olympiad for Nicholas has helped him learn to do better and take on bigger challenges and also strengthen his resolve to become a future programmer and make educational apps to help students learn math in fun ways. In the future, he sees himself pursuing this path in higher studies, building new software and even starting his own tech company. A Word With The Parents Nicholas’ mother revealed that his interest in solving problems and curiosity about computers even as a child was very evident. By elementary school, he was already building robots out of legos and eventually his interest in coding led him to join coding classes for Python. As supportive parents, they have always provided him with the time and resources needed to enhance his skills and learn more about programming. Even when faced with challenges, his parents have always encouraged him to keep trying. “We maintain a balanced schedule by giving him space, giving him time for school work, coding and also arrange time for practicing the piano.”, said his mother, “Also, don’t forget for relaxation and family time.” Conclusion Nicholas’ mother believes his persistence and curiosity and ability to focus is most important and his experience in competitions like this will not only build his problem solving skills but also grow his confidence and creativity. With heartfelt congratulations and the best wishes for his future, the interview wrapped up with Nicholas’ advice to young coders like him looking forward to joining the Python Olympiads next year being, “Practice every day. Don’t give up when you face a difficult problem and enjoy the process of learning.”

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Interview with Python Olympiad Finalist Kabir Kashab

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At the Python Olympiad 2025 hosted by GEMA, one of the youngest participants to make an impression and take the consolation prize home was 11-year-old Kabir Kashab. In an interview with GEMA after his win, Kabir shared how he discovered programming and the process behind his Olympiad project along with what his plans for the future are. Kabir’s journey into coding through curiosity and experimentation during the lockdown era. He first began with beginner-friendly platforms such as Scratch, Pictoblocks, and Code.org before moving on to more complex coding programmes such as Python. For him, this was the natural next step. “I wanted to learn Python after Scratch so I could move into proper coding,” he explained. That decision laid the groundwork for his eventual participation in the Olympiad. Preparation Process The International Python Olympiad was Kabir’s first ever programming competition. He acknowledged his family and mentors as his source of encouragement and with that motivation in mind he saw the competition as an opportunity to test the skills he had been learning only as a hobby up until this point. Kabir credits his father who is also a senior professional in the tech industry as one of his main inspirations. He also points to guidance from others in his father’s network who introduced him to Python and encouraged his early experiments with the language. Rather than focusing on the prize itself, Kabir viewed the competition as a platform to test his skills in a structured and competitive environment. Taking part in the competition gave Kabir experience in designing a project from start to finish under a time crunch which was a first for him. He approached the project in a systematic fashion, first sketching the framework and mapping out his game and then coding step by step. For his project, Kabir created a version of the classic Mad Libs game, which generates funny stories by filling in blanks with random words. The most difficult part of the entire process for Kabir was having to deal with bugs. Kabir admitted that he spent more time looking at “tiny details” in his code before moving on to major structures, since even small syntax errors can derail an entire program. This patient, detail-oriented method helped him push through obstacles and complete his submission. Kabir’s Interests Outside Coding Kabir shared that he particularly enjoys working with Matplotlib which is a library within Python for data visualization. Learning how to create charts and diagrams through this library helped him figure out that Python was much more than just games. Outside of programming and coding, Kabir is active in sports such as badminton, cricket, and table tennis, and also plays the guitar and drums. Kabir’s Thoughts on Teamwork When asked whether he prefers to work alone or in a team, Kabir said that he was comfortable with both but tends to favor independent work. Working alone gives him space to explore his ideas freely and at his own pace without having to compromise for a team effort. Even so, he has collaborated with peers during a school hackathon. Kabir currently is in the process of developing his own app GardenCraft which is designed to help people plan home gardens. He contributed the Python code as well as HTML and CSS for the layout, while his teammates used C++ to handle other parts of the app. His experience in the Python Olympiads has allowed him to balance independence with teamwork and exposed him to real-world collaboration. Conclusion In the next five to ten years, Kabir wants to design and develop more advanced apps and games. At the same time, in a thoughtful address, he noted that artificial intelligence will increasingly handle aspects of coding, which makes it important for young programmers to understand AI and new technologies. Overall, Kabir’s participation in the Python Olympiad demonstrates how early exposure to programming and the impact of structured challenges motivates young learners to pursue their imagination and creativity in non traditional ways.

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Meet Archie: The Genius Mind Behind The Python Olympiad 2025

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In a post-competition episode of Campus Highlights with GEMA Education, the Constellation level winner of the Python Olympiad 2025, 12-year old Archimedes Riupassa opened up about his passion for coding and preparations leading up to his win. Answering every question with quick wit, Archie talked about his passion for coding since he was in third grade since he wanted to entertain people with his games. He called his mother his biggest motivator, who always urged him to believe in himself and try new projects. His mother, who was also present during the interview called him a hardworking child who worked till late at night, and someone she never had discipline because of his passion towards coding. His effort and interest for coding truly spoke for itself when he opened up about his preparations and the obstacles he faced. He claimed he would create coding challenges for himself as practice and had to schedule his practice to still focus on school. During the process of creating his project, he admitted to feeling frustration at times. But Archie did not panic when faced with problems and with quick thinking, he overcame all his problems by the end. He quoted Sam Hogan as his biggest inspiration in the field of coding and technology, whose videos have always motivated him to create and code. His interests and hobbies other than coding and programming include swimming, drawing, and a keen interest in music. Not only is the Python Olympiad 2025 winner a technological genius but also a good athlete and artist. On being asked how he felt about being the winner, Archie said he began believing in his skills more and felt he had improved and got better at coding than before given that Python was a new coding language to him. In five to ten years, Archie sees himself developing games on Unity or C++; most probably a life simulator. His advice to anyone looking forward to joining the Python Olympiads next time is to never give up even when faced with difficult situations. In his own words Archie said: “If you face a problem that you seemingly can’t solve, don’t give up and just keep trying.” With the interview drawing to a close, Archie looked back at the competition as a good experience that helped him build his confidence with coding.

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