Students from the Kurdistan Region pose with their teachers and raise the Kurdistan flag after winning top ranks at the Arab mental math championship 2025 in Makkah, organized by the World Elite Mental Math Organization (WEMMO), Sept. 28, 2025.
Kurdistan Region students take top honors at 2025 Arab mental math championship in Makkah
MECCA – Five students from the Kurdistan Region competed in the 2025 Arab Mental Math Championship on Sept. 27, achieving top ranks and securing first place in one of the contest’s most advanced categories.
The competition, organized by the World Elite Mental Math Organization, brought together students from 11 countries. Representing the Kurdistan Region were Nali Ako, Diya Dana, and Hamwar Yaqoub from Sulaymaniyah, and Nidaa Salih and Ali Peshawa from Erbil.
“We are proud that among 11 countries we were able to raise the flag of Kurdistan and achieve this rare rank,” said Mabast Abbas, the team’s supervisor and teacher. He told 964media that the contest was divided into three levels—easy, intermediate, and advanced—and that the team aimed to place across all tiers.
“Five students from Kurdistan participated. We wanted to have results at all levels. Fortunately, we were able to secure first place at the advanced level, and second and third at the other levels,” Abbas said.
One of the standout performances came from 10-year-old Hamwar Yaqoub, who won first place in the advanced level by solving 150 math problems in just five minutes.
According to Abbas, this was the third year Kurdistan Region students had participated in the WEMMO championship, and in all three competitions, they placed first.
