Thomson
Gold, Gold, Silver, Bronze: AC Morfe Is Just Getting Started
In her first year at Heritage, Secondary 2 student Anleih Carys Morfe — AC to her classmates — has already brought home two Gold medals, a Silver and a Bronze, across three different international Olympiads. Three more finals await her this September.
AC’s run began at the Hong Kong International Science Olympiad (HKISO) Heat Round in November 2025, where she placed Gold. She repeated the feat at the HKISO Final Round this June, held onsite in Singapore, where she stood on stage among medallists representing Indonesia, Vietnam, Jordan and the Philippines. In between, she picked up a Silver at the International Equilibrium Science Olympiad (IESO) Heat Round and a Bronze at the Philippine International Mathematical Olympiad (PHIMO) Heat Round, both in March. This September, she returns to compete in three final rounds at once — IEMO, IESO and PHIMO — under the guidance of her coach, Marites Letrodo.
What makes the run more remarkable is that AC almost didn’t expect it. “I was actually really surprised that I managed to keep my usual results, because I had been really out of practice and didn’t get to study much before the Olympiads themselves,” she said. The HKISO Gold, in particular, caught her off guard — it is, by her own account, “a bit of a higher standard than my others,” where her usual result is Silver.
Her preparation is characteristically self-directed. Because Olympiad papers typically draw on content one to two grade levels above the one a student is sitting for — a Secondary 2 paper carrying a few Secondary 3 questions, for instance — AC works through previous years’ questions with her teachers, since topics tend to repeat. It is a habit that reflects exactly the kind of learner Heritage sets out to build: one who takes ownership of their own growth rather than waiting to be told what to study next.
“Being able to interact with my classmates and teachers again is really a great help for my motivation,”
AC joined Heritage’s HIS pathway, following the Singapore-Cambridge curriculum, just over a year ago. Much of her schooling before that had moved online through the pandemic — a stretch she says was difficult — and she is candid about what changed things for her. It is a reminder that excellence is rarely built in isolation. It grows out of community — the kind of steady, everyday encouragement from teachers and classmates that gives a student the confidence to walk into a room two grade levels above her own and hold her ground.
That is, at its heart, what Heritage hopes for every student who walks through our doors: to see their lives transformed, and to be excellence-driven in achieving success to their full potential — self-directed learners, confident and caring individuals, actively contributing to the community around them. AC is living that out, one Olympiad at a time.
Congratulations, Anleih Carys Morfe We extend our hand of Congratulations to you, your teachers, your coach, and your family for the support behind these results. We’ll be cheering you on as you head onsite to the IESO Finals in Clark, Pampanga this September, alongside two more final rounds.
Lives Transformed, Excellence-Driven.
