On the first step of the podium, winning the gold medal, was the Greek student “start up” Isometricks, at the European Final of Junior Achievement Europe GEN-E 2023.

The International Competition “Virtual Business – Company Program 2023” of Junior Achievement Greece, is held for the fourth consecutive year under the auspices of the President of the Republic Katerina Sakellaropoulou and is implemented every year with the approval of the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs.

Isometricks, formed by students of the Experimental Lyceum of the University of Macedonia, with its product, WIZZLE, an innovative board game of participants that has hidden mathematics and a beneficial effect on the brain, impressed the judges and the public and was named “Company of The Year 2023”, Best Student “Start Up” in Europe for 2023.

This year, it is the second consecutive year that a Greek team has won this distinction. Last year, in the same competition, the gold medal was won by the Microgreens Magicgreens team from the 2nd Experimental High School of Kilkis. It is the first time, in the 104 years of Junior Achievement (founded in 1919), that a country has won the first prize of the continent in this competition for the second consecutive year.

In a few months Isometricks will represent Europe in the Junior Achievement Worldwide World Competition in which the winning teams of the first prize from Europe, Africa, USA, Latin America, Asia and Arab countries will compete.

The “Isometricks” team consists of Korina Malasidi, Ioannis Terpsiadis, Fay Katsanou, Marina Yakoumoglou and Nikolaos Sivvas, while the team consists of 17 students from the first and second grade who are: Emilia Voukouresli, Christoforos Zirnas, Apostolos Kultoukis, Maria Mimidou, Styliani Tsuka, Thomas Stephanidis, Emmanuel Tsintaris, Panagiotis Tsintaris, Artemis Tsountoukidou, Socrates Ouzounis, Andreas Omirou, Constantina Sarafidi.

The teachers who supported and guided the children are Nikos Terpsiadis, Anna Matsyori and Kyriaki Vassilou from the Experimental Lyceum of the University of Macedonia.

Following their award, students and teachers said: “We are very happy that we represented Greece by winning the first place in the JA Europe pan-European competition. We learned a lot, broadened our horizons and start preparing to represent Europe in the world final. We would like to thank JA Europe, JA Greece with its wonderful people and especially Mr. Argyris Tzikopoulos, Ioanna Kyprioti, Eliza Pavlidi, Maria Giannetou, Fotini Kokkinaki, Fotini Tourni, the internationally renowned Brand Strategist Mr. Peter Economides, our mentors from IKEA Thessaloniki Mr. Papadopoulos and Mr. Varela and our Inspirational Mentor, Director of Kathimerini, Mr. Alexis Papachelas.”

What is Wizzle by Isometricks

It is an original board game of fun, thinking and creativity with hidden mathematics. Its pieces, designed and printed by the children themselves on a 3D printer, are combined in different ways based on the rules of geometric symmetries, so that the user “learns” mathematics while having fun and strengthening the functioning of the mind. The game, which is simple to use and suitable for all ages, is a valuable educational tool and appears to work both preventively and therapeutically for people with mental retardation, dementia and Alzheimer’s. The wizzle is on sale at the MOMus Museums (Metropolitan Organization of Thessaloniki’s Visual Arts Museums) and new collaborations are being prepared. Learn more about the student “start-up” on its official website: https://sites.google.com/view/wizzle.