Vietnamese student crowned Excel world champion in California

A Vietnamese student won the world Microsoft Excel title and an US$8,000 prize at the Microsoft Office Specialist World Championship in California on July 29. Nguyen Mai Chi, a student at Vietnam Maritime University in Hai Phong, took first place in the Microsoft Excel 365 Apps category, finishing ahead of Aleksy Jakub Dobrodziej of Poland, according to results published by Pearson, an education service provider.Pearson runs the championship through its Certiport business. The competition has run since 2002 and is open to contestants between 13 and 22 years of age. It is now in its 24th year, having skipped 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic.This year's final brought 135 competitors aged 13 to 22 to Anaheim from July 26 to 29. Each had won a national round in one of 36 countries and territories.Competitors sit a certification exam and build a project in the software track they qualified in, working from a brief handed to them on site. Pearson's official rules bar them from discussing the material at any point afterward.Six world titles are awarded, one per track. First place pays $8,000, second $4,000 and third $2,000, by wire transfer.American competitors reached the top 10 in all six categories but won none of the titles. Their best result was a third place in Microsoft PowerPoint Office 2019. Nguyen Mai Chi (4th L) receives her trophy at the Microsoft Office Specialist World Championship among other winners at the competition in Anaheim, California, on July 29, 2026. Photo courtesy of IIG Vietnam Vietnam sent six competitors to Anaheim.Nguyen Dinh Bao, a 12th-grade student from Da Nang, placed third in Microsoft PowerPoint 365 Apps.Do Le Tuan Kiet, an 11th-grader from Dong Nai City, placed third in Microsoft Excel Office 2019.Pham Le Minh Tam, a highschooler from Ninh Binh Province, finished ninth in Microsoft Word Office 2019 while Phung Ngoc Uyen My, a highschooler from Hanoi, finished 10th in Microsoft PowerPoint Office 2019.At the Adobe Certified Professional World Championship, awarded at the same ceremony, Ho Nhat Anh, My' schoolmate, placed fifth.That competition, in its 13th year, drew 56 finalists from 27 countries and territories. It was won by Lulu Emanuele of the U.S.IIG Vietnam, which runs the national qualifying rounds, said nearly 1,500 students from 185 school and university teams entered this year and 150 reached the national final.The organization said the 2026 results lifted Vietnam's cumulative total at the two championships to 28 medals, including six golds, four silvers and 18 bronzes.This was the country's 17th year sending a team to the Microsoft final and its ninth at the Adobe event.