A total of 164 students were selected yesterday in the last divisional round of Mathematics Festival to compete in the two-day National Mathematics Festival-2014 and 12th Bangladesh Mathematical Olympiad to be held on February 14 and 15 at the capital's St Joseph Higher Secondary School.

As many as 2,218 students from 184 institutions of Dhaka, Gazipur and Manikganj districts participated in the event organised by Bangladesh Mathematical Olympiad Committee (BMOC) in collaboration with the Dutch-Bangla Bank Limited (DBBL) and the Bangla daily Prothom Alo at Dhaka Residential Model College yesterday.

With the Dhaka candidates, around 1,200 students have been selected from

across the country under four groups -Primary (class III-V), Junior (class VI-VI1I), Secondary (class IX-X and SSC examinees) and Higher Secondary (class XI-XII and HSC examinees) - for the February 14 and 15 gala festivals.

Those who will perform best in the gala festivals will get the opportunity to compete in the 55th International Mathematical Olympiad in Cape Town, South Africa this July, with an aim to win gold as Bangladesh has already bagged silver and bronze medals before.

Vice Principal of Residential Model College Sultan Uddin Ahmed inaugurated the festival by hoisting the national flag while BMOC President Jamilur Reza Choudhury hoisted the flag of the Bangladesh Mathematical Olympiad. Dr Muhammed Zafar Iqbal, Dr Kaykobad, Prof Khodadad Khan, Prof Lutfuzzaman, eminent scientist Dr Rezaur Rahman, DBBL Senior Vice President Ehteshamul Haq Khan, Associate Editor of Prothom Alo Abdul Quayum and BMOC General Secretary Munir Hasan were also present.