Memoir of Physics Olympiad IPhO-2004 Korea

The revolutionary developments in modern physics such as quantum physics and theory of relativity emerged at the turn of 20th century, changed our understanding of the Nature fundamentally and became a decisive moment to recognize the importance of “Physics”. The Physics Olympiad, which began in 1967 at Poland with a physics examination contest for high school students from five countries, had grown into an international event with participation over 60 countries by the year 2000. This article explains the preparation process for hosting IPhO-2004, such as the formation of the organizing committee, preparation of test problems, the selection of the venue, and the securing of the necessary budget. It also describes how the students and leaders from each country were accommodated, students staying at dormitories of POSTECH while the leaders at hotels in Gyeongju. This report covers the opening ceremony, the leaders’ and students’ reactions on the test problems, the test results, and the closing ceremony.