The news hasn't made headlines for several days now, but 26 opted, rather than focusing on the immediacy of the event, for a relaxed and pleasant conversation with one of the protagonists.

Because, while the event itself is that the students from Sancti Spíritus, Leticia María Merlo Alfonso and Ernesto Alejandro Barrera Ramírez, won bronze medals at the 60th edition of the prestigious Mendeleev International Chemistry Olympiad, it is also commendable that the coach leading the talented delegation was Professor Orestes Eduardo Landrove Ramírez from Las Tunas.

A man steeped in Chemistry, he leads the Provincial Training Center of the Luis Urquiza Jorge Vocational Pre-University Institute of Exact Sciences (IPVCE in Spanish). For over 25 years, he worked with the national coaching staff, and his name is inextricably linked to generations of graduates from the province's main pre-university school.

We spoke at his workplace on one of the many hot mornings we've been experiencing lately, grateful for the shade and tranquility provided by the enormous mango trees hanging there, easily accessible to any willing visitor.

“I'm from Puerto Padre. At José Maceo Junior High School, I had a teacher who used many experiments in his classes, which motivated me to study chemistry. A cousin of mine also earned a degree in chemistry from the University of Oriente, and when I look back, those two things are what motivated me to study the subject.” Landrove is a graduate of the Holguín Pedagogical University, and although he was assigned to the Jobabo Polytechnic, he says he never taught anywhere else because he was immediately offered a year at the IPVCE (Pre-University Vocational Institute of Exact Sciences). Since then, 35 academic years have passed, and his energy and teaching vocation remain undiminished in those familiar, historic halls.

“I always tell the parents that it seems like I'm teaching Chemistry, but their children are actually developing very important intellectual skills. Although it gets harder each year to inspire the students because it takes a great deal of sacrifice to compete, to dedicate yourself entirely to a science. You can have a lot of talent, but if you're not motivated to do things, you won't succeed.

“In the 1990s, for example, there was a Special Period, but it wasn't like now; we didn't have the competition from cell phones and other issues that threaten all of this.” Today's students have to make a greater effort; the current is so unreliable, and there are needs everywhere. All of this affects their dedication and performance.

“I have students who have made a special impression on me. Among them is Gerardo Manuel Ojeda, who recently went with me to Russia. In the 2000s, I took him to an International Chemistry Olympiad in Hungary, along with a student from Sancti Spíritus, and this time it was even more rewarding because he was there as a mentor alongside me.

Seeing his interest in ensuring that the students are focused on the competition, do well, and work hard—we've never lost touch, and it has made a big impression on me.”

We took advantage of his mention to talk about the experience in Russia and, incidentally, learn why Cuban participation in the Mendeleev International Chemistry Olympiad is so important.

“This is the oldest chemistry competition in the world.” It's worth explaining that the International Olympiad for the same subject is also held, with around 90 countries participating. Although only about 40 nations compete in this Olympiad, the teams are larger. Russia sent 15 students, and China slightly more; so you're competing against a higher level of skill.

"In addition, there are a few participants from Latin America; therefore, you're facing students from Europe and Asia, who represent a very high level of expertise.
"Initially, this was the USSR National Olympiad, and all its republics participated. When the socialist bloc collapsed, the Russian Federation took over the event, and it became international.

"Last year, for example, it was held in Brazil (where Ernesto, the same young man who excelled this year in Russia, also won a bronze medal); before that, it was held in China. For this reason, we've been winning medals in an Olympiad considered the most difficult in the world for this subject." He speaks of the students, the efforts of the coaches in the province of Sancti Spíritus, and the achievements they are making, and he says that for them, performance in the experimental area was more crucial than theory in obtaining the results.

“I’m very pleased with these students. I knew Leticia from last year’s course because I had been in that province giving a week-long experimental training, and she was among the students who participated.
They are excellent teachers and very good people. The team was originally four, but due to budget issues, it was just the two of them.

It’s a pleasure to see them working, despite all the limitations here, the countless obstacles to practical training, something we’re working on because, clearly, more practice leads to better results. Science requires funding.”

Despite the surge in results in Sancti Spíritus and Professor Landrove’s conviction that “we are all Cuba, and the goal is to find talent wherever it may be and support it,” he does dedicate a few minutes to the small space, the one that is dear to him because he has seen it conceived, born, and perfected amidst countless dilemmas and challenges.

“The IPVCE Training Center in Las Tunas has a solid foundation and a faculty of highly responsible, valuable, and dedicated professors; and it's good to talk about that, as well as the results from Las Tunas, which aren't recent, but rather the product of a long period of hard work.

“The first gold medal Cuba ever won at an Ibero-American Olympiad was won by a student from this province (Amaury Pupo Meriño), and the country's only gold medal at an International Olympiad was also won by someone from Las Tunas (Luis Daniel Cruz Zaragoza).

“We also have one of the three silver medals the nation has won at an International Olympiad (Gerardo Manuel Ojeda), and we earned a bronze and an honorable mention at the same event. In other words, we hold all four medals awarded at this important competition.” Landrove speaks of his students with a pride he does not attempt to hide. He feels a deep commitment to teaching, driven by a sincere passion, and recalls the names of students who haven't graced the halls of the venerable institution for a long time. Listening to him and talking with him confirms the value of good teachers and makes us grateful to those who, like him, remain faithful and committed to their profession.