Emmanuel Rassou dedicates prize to his late mother
CAPE TOWN - Mathematics fundi Emmanuel Rassou, a grade 11 learner from the South African College High school in Newlands, who won the Old Mutual South African Maths Olympiad (SAMO) has dedicated his prize to his late mother.
At the weekend, Rassou was named as one of the South African Mathematics Foundation’s (SAMF) top achievers when he received a gold medal as the overall winner of the Senior Division category.
The Olympiad is a SAMF flagship learner development programme sponsored by Old Mutual, Nestlé Nespray South Africa, and the South African Institute for Chartered Accountants (SAICA).
Meanwhile, the overall top performing schools for the SAMO and South African Maths Competition (SAMC) both from Cape Town, were Bishops Diocesan College and Sweet Valley Primary School, respectively.
Rassou, previously a winner of the junior event, was elated at being crowned national champion for 2021.
“The margins are very small and previous competitions ended up in three-way ties which means that the gap between first, second and third is paper thin and my fellow maths Olympians are just as deserving. I would like to dedicate my medal to my late mother whose memory I want to honour,” said Rassou.
He added that he would like to share his story with fellow learners who have faced hardship, saying that hard work and dedication can help overcome difficult circumstances.
His dream is to improve the lives of the less privileged and he is currently involved in a project at his school to raise funds to send 67 kids to school.
He also dreams of meeting business magnate and entrepreneur Elon Musk and travel to Mars in one of the SpaceX rockets.
“I thank God for always being by my side, my teachers for believing in me over the years and I hope that I can do my part to use some of my prize winnings to make the 67 kids to school project a success,” Rassou said.
Human capital director at Old Mutual, Celiwe Ross, said: “We're exceptionally proud of all the scholars who have made it to the final round, performing exceptionally well during what has been another challenging year.”
Cape Times