Photo courtesy of Ministry of Education Photo courtesy of Ministry of Education (CNA photo)

Taipei, July 22 (CNA) All four Taiwanese students taking part in the 2018 International Biology Olympiad (IBO) in Iran have won gold medals, putting their team in first place alongside China, the Ministry of Education said Sunday.

In the individual category, Chen Yun-chen of National Tainan First Senior High School finished in third place globally, which was the best performance by a Taiwanese student.

Cheng Yu-chi of Taipei Municipal Jianguo High School finished fifth, while Lu Chen-yu of Kaohsiung Municipal Senior High School ranked seventh.

The four Taiwanese students who represented Taiwan at the 2018 IBO were selected and trained by 20 teachers from National Sun Yat-Sen University, the ministry said a statement.

Tied with China, Taiwan finished at the top of the rankings for the first time since it began participating in the IBO in 1999.

The Taiwan team will bring home four gold medals, which will earn each winner in the four categories NT$200,000 (US$6,660) in prize money from the ministry of education.