Nigerian students Don-Anele Munachimso Marvelous, Chimdiebube Onwubiko, and Egejurum Onyedikachi Ethan made history by winning a total of four gold medals and one silver medal at the Grand Finale of the 2026 International STEM Olympiad in Rome, Italy. Competing against thousands of participants from over 150 countries at the Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, the trio delivered a dominant, world-class performance.
The Champions and Their Achievements
- Egejurum Onyedikachi Ethan (11 years old): Won a Gold medal in Mathematics and emerged as the World’s Best in the Primary Mathematics Category
Don-Anele Munachimso Marvelous (17 years old): Won Two Gold medals—one in Grade 11 Mathematics and another in Grade 11 Science, finishing 2nd place overall globally in Science
Chimdiebube Onwubiko (13 years old): Won a Gold medal in Grade 9 Mathematics and a Silver medal in Junior Secondary Science
The Journey to Rome
The students earned their spots on the world stage after outperforming more than 11,500 contestants at the Southeast Mathematics Olympiad in Nigeria. Notably, Don-Anele Munachimso entered the global arena already holding Nigeria’s top score in IGCSE Chemistry, a first-place finish at the National Mathematics Competition in Abuja, and a $100,000 academic scholarship to Canada
Private Sponsorship vs. Institutional Gaps
We came to Rome and we conquered -Alex Onyia
The historic trip was entirely crowd-funded and facilitated by private educational advocate and Educare CEO, Alex Onyia. Onyia contributed over €30,000 to fully cover flights, visas, registration fees, and accommodation for the students and their teachers, Anthony Iwegbu Tochukwu and Chisom Unachukwu. The widespread celebration of their victory across major news networks, including has renewed local conversations surrounding the need for better federal government funding and recognition for gifted students in international competitions.
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