Marató de Problemes 2024

Contests

Problem Marathon 2024

The telematic activity is being held for the 14th year «Problem Marathon», for students in 3rd and 4th year of ESO (although exceptionally younger students participate, perhaps advised by a teacher at the school).

We have reached the end of the contest.
You can check the scores for problem 14 and the contest verdict.

CURRENT EDITION INFORMATION

Contest verdict

After receiving the scores awarded by the evaluation team for problem 14, and analyzing the overall scores obtained, the organizing committee of the Problem Marathon has decided:

To award three first prizes, to the passwords TM829BM, EE796SG, IJ298TE, which obtained 58.7, 58.6, and 58.6 points out of the maximum of 60 that the contest could award.
To award four second prizes to contestants who exceeded 56.5 points, corresponding to the passwords KU874TA, EI767LB, HD874CI, and JN799KU.
To publish, as a mention, the names of the eight other contestants who exceeded 50 points.
To warmly congratulate the people who completed the contest, overall with very valuable work.

Barcelona, May 14, 2024

List of prizes and recognitions

First prizes

With 58.7 points, Biel Rodríguez Antequera student in 3rd year of ESO at Institut Vila-seca, in Vila-seca
With 58.6 points, ex aequo, Yile Liu, student in 3rd year of ESO at Col·legi Sant Lluís, in Barcelona, and
Bernat Martínez Vázquez, student in 4th year of ESO at Institut Centre d’Alt Rendiment Esportiu, in Sant Cugat del Vallès

Second prizes

With 57.9 points Ángel Fernández Díaz, student in 3rd year of ESO at Institut Torre Roja, in Viladecans
With 57.1 points, Pol Martínez Vázquez, student in 2nd year of ESO at Col·legi de La Salle Bonanova, in Barcelona
With 56.8 points, Vahe Arsenyan Kobalyan, student in 3rd year of ESO at Col·legi Sant Lluís, in Barcelona
With 56.6 points, Irati Papió Jiménez student in 3rd year of ESO at Institut Jaume I, in Salou

Once the identity of these second prizes is known, special recognition is given to Pol Martínez, the second student in 2nd year of ESO to receive a prize in the Marathon throughout all the years of the contest.

Recognition

The list of students who obtained more than 50 points is as follows:

With 55 points, Abril Catalán Ribolleda, 4ESO, Institut Ernest Lluch (Barcelona); with 54.8 points, Martí Guinjoan Juárez, 3ESO, Institut Manuel Blancafort (La Garriga); with 54.5 points, Ariadna Lidón Ardanuy, 4ESO, Escoles Minguella (Badalona); with 53.1 points, Jordina Pi Mas, 3ESO, Institut Montilivi (Girona); with 52.8 points, Gerard Hernández, 3ESO, Institut Vidreres (Vidreres); with 51.3 points, Ot Santacreu Serra, 4t ESO, Institut Pius Font i Quer (Manresa); with 51.2 points, Sandro Celemín Domènech, 3ESO, Institut Gelida (Gelida); and with 50.9 points, Guillem Cortés Campillo, 4ESO, Escola Casal dels Àngels (Hospitalet de Llobregat).

Award ceremony

The award ceremony will be on May 27, 2024, in an event that begins at six in the evening, at the AXA auditorium, in the Illa building, on Avinguda Diagonal in Barcelona, as part of the’award ceremony of the Kangaroo test and other activities of the SCM.

We recall the call and instructions

The SCM, together with FEEMCAT and cesire, are organizing, for the thirteenth time, a telematic problem-solving activity, aimed at students in the final years of ESO, which will take place from late January to April 2024, according to the following instructions

The contest is aimed at students in 3rd and 4th year of ESO.

Students in 2nd year of ESO. may also participate. In this case, it is advisable that a teacher at the school has suggested it and that they are aware of the target audience the contest is primarily aimed at.

Registration is now closed

The contest is proposed as an individual activity for students at the indicated levels. Therefore, participants are asked to respect the spirit of this contest and not seek help «outside the contest.».

The 2024 Marathon consists of 15 problems

It starts with a problem 0, proposed as a numerical diversion, whose answer must be sent with the registration form…

There are another 11 problems with concrete answers (numerical or other types). When the solution is sent, the form will indicate whether it is correct or not, and if it is not, a second attempt will be available, with the scores indicated in the table for the first attempt and half for the second. There may be some exceptions to this evaluation procedure if the problem solution requires a literal expression; timely notice will be given.

Finally, for the three problems that complete the 15 of the contest, a reasoning leading to the solution must be sent in a .PDF file. There will only be one opportunity for this.

The organization may eventually publish some «problem supplement» or increase the number of problems if any reason makes it advisable.

To facilitate the participants' task, combining it with various school activities, the deadline for sending responses extends from publication (a Friday) until the response deadline closes (usually a Monday, 10 days later; that is, with two weekends within the deadline). To coordinate the schedule, the publication of each pair of statements will occur before the response submission deadline for the previous two ends.
For the «explanation problems,» the deadlines are longer and do not necessarily start on Friday or end on Monday, and regarding the last two, Easter week has been considered in case someone wants to dedicate some time to them.

CALL FOR

DEVELOPMENT OF THE CONTEST

Problems and Scoring	Open or Closed Deadline	Publication	Response Deadline	Statements	Forms
Problem 0 (worth 2 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240123	Ends: 20240219	Statement	Form
Problem 1 (worth 2 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240216	Ends: 20240226	Statement	Form
Problem 2 (worth 2 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240216	Ends: 20240226	Statement	Form
Problem 3 (worth 3 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240223	Ends: 20240304	Statement	Form
Problem 4 (worth 3 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240223	Ends: 20240304	Statement	Form
Problem 5 (worth 3 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240301	Ends: 20240311	Statement	Form
Problem 6 (worth 4 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240301	Ends: 20240311	Statement	Form
Problem 7 (worth 7 points) (explanation problem)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240308	Ends: 20240328	Statement	Form
Problem 8 (worth 3 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240315	Ends: 20240401	Statement	Form
Problem 9 (worth 4 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240315	Ends: 20240401	Statement	Form
Problem 10 (worth 4 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240322	Ends: 20240408	Statement	Form
Problem 11 (worth 4 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240322	Ends: 20240408	Statement	Form
Problem 12 (worth 7 points) (explanation problem)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240322	Ends: 20240415	Statement	Form
Problem 13 First part (worth 3 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240405	Ends: 20240415	Statement	Form
Problem 13 Second part (supplement, worth 2 points)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240405	Ends: 20240415	Statement	Form
Problem 14 (worth 7 points) (explanation problem)	Closed deadline	Starts: 20240405	Ends: 20240425	Statement	Form
News! Problem 15 (outside the contest)	Open deadline	Starts: 20240412	Ends:	Statement	Form

Statistical data and some ideas about the solutions

In the Marathon In 2023 there were 173 registrations for the contest.
This year it has improved with record data.

339 registrations
310 correct answers for problem 0 on the first attempt and 12 on the second attempt.
Problem 1: 210 responses. 149 correct answers on the first attempt and 20 on the second attempt.
Problem 2: 170 responses. 131 correct answers on the first attempt and 10 on the second attempt.
An idea to visualize the solution.
Problem 3: 147 responses. 120 correct answers on the first attempt and 15 on the second attempt.
Problem 4: 131 responses. 88 correct answers on the first attempt and 16 on the second attempt.
An interesting idea to reason the solution
Problem 5: 132 responses. 72 correct answers on the first attempt and 23 on the second attempt.
Problem 6: 104 responses. 55 correct answers on the first attempt and 26 on the second attempt.

Up to problem 6 there are…

22 contestants with the maximum of 19 points
11 contestants with 18 points
12 contestants with 17.5 points
another 30 contestants with 14 points or more

Problem 8: 72 responses. 27 correct answers on the first attempt and 14 on the second attempt.
Problem 9: 54 responses. 43 correct answers on the first attempt and 3 on the second attempt.
Problem 10: 56 responses. 38 correct answers on the first attempt and 6 on the second attempt.
Problem 11: 53 responses. 52 correct answers on the first attempt and 1 on the second attempt.
Problem 13 first part: 47 responses, 26 correct answers on the first attempt, 8 correct answers on the second attempt.
Problem 13, supplement: 38 responses; 32 with complete correct answer; 3 with partial correct answer.

In the set of concrete answer problems there have been…

5 contestants with the maximum of 39 points
7 contestants with a score between 37 and 37.7 points
6 contestants with a score between 36 and 36.5 points
another 12 contestants with 33 points or more

Problem 7. First «explain» problem»

Once the 55 responses have been evaluated by a team of 4 people, who are or have been teaching secondary education for many years, a good part of the group of contestants who sent the response must be warmly congratulated.

There are 7 contestants with a score of 7 points.
7 more contestants with a score between 6.5 and 6.9 points.
4 more contestants with a score between 5.9 and 6.4 points.
The median is 4.2 points and the average is 4.06 points.

Problem 12. Second «explain» problem»

32 responses were received. The responses have been evaluated by a team of 4 people. Each one has given their score and the arithmetic mean has been calculated, rounded up to the first decimal. This procedure, which respects the criteria of each of the jury members, is equivalent in practice to a debate to reach a consensus on the criteria. Given the scores awarded, a good part of the group of contestants who sent the response must be warmly congratulated.

At the proposal of one of the members of the evaluation team, it was unanimously decided, in accordance with the contest rules, to award 7.1 points to two contestants to especially highlight their work. Congratulations!
There are 8 contestants with an excellent score between 6.7 and 7 points.
9 more contestants with a score between 5 and 6.4 points.
The median is 6.1 points and the average is 5.13 points. Very valuable data!!!!
By decision of the jury, three responses that did not respect the idea, explicit in the instructions, that this contest aims to foster an interest in mathematical work through problem-solving, and naturally, although the contest is individual, teamwork can always add value. However, even if there has been joint work, it is essential that the writing of the solution to this proposal be a personal, individual task.

Problem 14. Last problem of the contest.

The scores have already been published. Soon you will be able to read statistical data on this problem and the overall scores of the contest.