A very useful resource for students who want to deepen their study of olympiad mathematics is the collection called “Senior Pills”.
You can find it here: 🔗 http://olimpiadi.dm.unibo.it/il-senior-in-pillole/
This page gathers video lectures and teaching materials from olympiad training camps and represents one of the best collections of advanced content available online.
The lessons are organized by topic and with progressive difficulty, and include:
- lesson videos
- lecture notes and materials in PDF format
- explanations of techniques and results used in olympiad competitions
It is therefore a very well-structured collection, particularly useful for students who want to study topics beyond the introductory level.
What the Senior training camp is
The Senior training camp is one of the national preparation camps organized by the Mathematics Olympiad Project of the UMI.
The camps usually take place in Pisa, at the Scuola Normale Superiore, and are designed for particularly motivated and promising students.
During these camps:
- problem-solving techniques are studied in depth
- more advanced mathematical theorems and results are introduced
- exercises and competition simulations are carried out
During the year, three main camps are organized: one in September, one in January, and the last in May.
Participation in the camps is free, and for many selected students travel, accommodation, and meals are also covered.
Student selection
To participate in the first camp it is necessary to pass an admission test, which is organized every year.
Students who achieve the best results may also participate in the subsequent camps.
The results of the competitions and tests carried out during the camps are used by the national team leaders, led by Prof. Massimo Gobbino, to identify the students who will represent Italy in international competitions, including the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO).
For this reason, the Senior camps represent one of the most important stages of olympiad preparation at the national level.