A Brief History of the iGeo
During the 1994 IGU Congress in Prague, geographers from Poland and the Netherlands proposed the creation of an International Geography Competition or “Olympiad” (iGeo) for students between 15 and 19 years of age. The first iGeo was held in 1996 in The Hague, The Netherlands, with five participating countries. From these humble beginnings, the International Geography Olympiad has grown dramatically, with students from 50 countries, representing five continents, competing in iGeo 2025 in Bangkok, Thailand.
Prior to 2012, the International Geography Olympiads were held every two years, but since then, iGeo has become an annual event, with the exception of 2020, which was cancelled due to the COVID 19 pandemic. Olympiads in 2021 (Türkiye) and 2022 (Paris) were hosted online before a face-to-face competition was re-established in Bandung, Indonesia, in 2023. A map showing the locations of all of the previous iGeo events can be found below.
Map of Previous iGeo Events
Click on a dot for location, year, name of chair, and number of participating countries.
