Mongolian team takes 11th place

Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ A Mongolian team consisting of three pupils took the 11th place in the National Geographic World Championship. The event started July 28 in Saint Petersburg city, Russia. Participating for the first time, our team has been followed by opponents from Great Britain, China, Bulgaria and Czech Republic. The Mongolian pupils have been selected by the national contest named "Mongolian Wunderkind-2013" geographic Olympiad which was co-organized by the Institute of Geography at the Academy of Sciences and the School of Geography at Mongolia's State University (MSU) initiated by the National Geographic Mongolia Project and the "National Geographic Kids Mongolia" magazine. As members of the jury have noted, the Mongolian children show English language proficiency, skills of explaining, and logic. As the semi-finals finished, the teams of the USA, Canada and India will compete at the final round at the Russian Geographical Society’s headquarters on Wednesday. This year’s contest is sponsored by Google and presented in partnership with the Russian Geographical Society. The National Geographic World Championship takes place every two years. The first contest, held in London in 1993, was won by the United States, which beat teams from the United Kingdom and Russia. Australia, competing against four other teams, won the 1995 competition at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. The third championship, held in 1997 in Washington, D.C., was won by Canada, which bested teams from eight other regions. The United States won the 1999 competition held in Toronto, Canada, as well as the 2001 contest in Vancouver, Canada; the 2003 contest at Busch Gardens, Tampa Bay, Florida; and the 2005 contest in Budapest, Hungary. Mexico claimed victory at the 2007 competition at SeaWorld, San Diego, California. Canada won the 2009 World Championship in Mexico City, and Russia took top honors at the 2011 contest held in the San Francisco, California, area. National Geographic Society chairman and CEO John Fahey said the competition was a great way for talented young geographers around the world to match wits against each other and to enjoy a rewarding cross-cultural exchange. “The competition enhances international dialogue and understanding and promotes friendships around the globe, and we hope it inspires tomorrow’s leaders to be more geographically literate and more connected to the world they live in,” he said. “The National Geographic World Championship competitors embody the spirit of curiosity about our planet that has defined the National Geographic Society for 125 years.” “Google has sponsored the U.S. geography competition, the National Geographic Bee, for five years, and we are delighted to return as sponsor of the World Championship for the second time,” said Brian McClendon, vice president of engineering, Google Earth and Maps. “We were impressed by the caliber of students during the national U.S. competition and are looking forward to seeing the best of the best from around the world demonstrate their skills as they take a shot at the world title,” he added. The National Geographic Society developed the National Geographic Bee in 1989 and the National Geographic World Championship in 1993 in response to concern about the lack of geographic knowledge among young people in the United States.