Six gold, four silver medals for Romania at International Astronomy and Astrophysics Olympiad

Romania won six gold and four silver medals at the 8th edition of the International Astronomy and Astrophysics Olympiad (IAAO), officially closed on Sunday in Suceava (northeastern Romania). Romania was represented by two teams comprising of a total of ten members, all of whom got gold or silver medals.

Denis Turcu, a graduate from the Bucharest International Informatics High School (IIL), winner of the 2013 IAAO and second at the International Physics Olympiad, already admitted at Harvard University, got the highest score at IAAO this year – and the gold medal.
Gold also went – in the order of scores – to Tudor Costel Cretu of IIL, also a silver medalist at the 2013 International Physics Olympiad; Iustina Craciun, a graduate from IIL and IAAO 2013 gold medalist, admitted at Princeton University; Paul Andrei Draghis from the National College Vasile Lucaciu of Baia Mare (northwestern Romania), who already won the silver at IAAO 2013 and gold at the 2013 International Astronomy Olympiad; Andrei Cruceu, a graduate from ILL and silver medalist at IAAO 2013, admitted at the University College of London; and Andrei Raduc of IIL, silver medalist at the Tuymada 2013 Multidisciplinary Olympiad and at the 2012 International Astronomy Olympiad.
Silver-winning Romanians were Dan Stefan Eniceicu (LII, gold at the 2014 International Physics Olympiad); Tudor Suciu National College Vasile Lucaciu of Baia Mare, gold at the 2013 International Astronomy Olympiad); Catalina Miritescu (IIL graduate, bronze at IAAO 2013, admitted at Caltech University; and Augustin Ionescu (graduate from the National College Nicolae Titulescu of Pucioasa, Dambovita County, admitted at the Faculty of Physics of Bucharest).
More than 300 competitors from 37 countries on five continents attended the IAAO 2014; a staff of 500 helped organizing it for the first time in Romania. The Ministry of National Education has allocated EUR 200,000 for the event, including the purchase of 35 new telescopes, many of which will remain at the Suceava Planetarium, the largest in Romania.