Students from Indian community schools in Dammam and Jubail passed with flying colors bringing success to Saudi Arabia at the 18th UCMAS Mental Arithmetic International Competition held on Dec. 9 at the International Islamic University in Kuala Lumpur.

The Dammam and Jubail students performed well and achieved higher ranks in the competition in which more than 5,000 students from 52 countries participated in 12 different categories. A total of 72 students from the Kingdom competed in six different categories.

The winners from Dammam and Jubail were Parikshit Bhoiyar and Huzaifa A. Mulla, first two runners-up in the B category, Mariyam Safi Hyder, second runner-up in the D category, Arpan Vihan, second runner-up in the E category, Rowy Rose, Mithila Babu Mani and Arshad Shafi Khan, second runner-up in the F category, Prateek Rai, Champion Trophy winner, Umme-e-mun Mazhar and S. Deepak Kumar, second runner-up in the G category, Aadit Jeysankar and Anirudha Nayak, first runner-up and Shahas Mohammed, Sahana Sainath, Rohan Manuel and Rohit Srinivas, second runner-up in the H category.

The competition was based on two different rounds. The contest in the first round categories B, C, D, E was on abacus with 150 sums of addition/subtraction in eight minutes. The second round of categories F, G, H was with mental abacus of 200 sums of addition/subtraction/ multiplication and division also in eight minutes.

UCMAS Abacus is a unique brain development program where the child is able to do mathematical calculation with speed and accuracy.

Samina Mazhar, the program director of UCMAS Center in the Eastern Province, said 19 students from center won 16 trophies at the competition.

“I am very happy and excited; our students have done extremely well,” she told Arab News from Colombo on her way back to Dammam. “The center brought laurels to the Kingdom earlier in 2007 by participating in the 14th international contest,” she said.

UCMAS is a child development program based on mental math and the abacus that boosts brainpower in children aged between 4 and 13. Along with strengthening math skills, the UCMAS approach promotes whole brain development and establishes foundational building blocks like memory, concentration, creativity and problem solving, core skills that inspire greater confidence and success in all subject areas and in life.

“Our exciting classes and energetic instructors ensure that our students have fun as they learn,” said Samina Mazhar. “Since 1993, UCMAS has helped more than one million children around the world ‘Discover the Genius Within.’”

There were participants from more than 50 countries, including Saudi Arabia, India, Pakistan, the UAE, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Egypt, Jordan, Sudan, Algeria, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Indonesia.