Olympiad problems

2001 IMO Shortlist, 8

Twenty-one girls and twenty-one boys took part in a mathematical competition. It turned out that each contestant solved at most six problems, and for each pair of a girl and a boy, there was at least one problem that was solved by both the girl and the boy. Show that there is a problem that was solved by at least three girls and at least three boys.

2016 IMO Shortlist, C3

Tags: combinatorics , coloring , ramsey theory

Let $n$ be a positive integer relatively prime to $6$. We paint the vertices of a regular $n$-gon with three colours so that there is an odd number of vertices of each colour. Show that there exists an isosceles triangle whose three vertices are of different colours.

1999 IMO Shortlist, 4

Tags: algebra , coloring , partition , ramsey theory , combinatorics

Prove that the set of positive integers cannot be partitioned into three nonempty subsets such that, for any two integers $x,y$ taken from two different subsets, the number $x^2-xy+y^2$ belongs to the third subset.

2008 China Team Selection Test, 3

Tags: search , arithmetic sequence , ramsey theory , combinatorics

Suppose that every positve integer has been given one of the colors red, blue,arbitrarily. Prove that there exists an infinite sequence of positive integers $ a_{1} < a_{2} < a_{3} < \cdots < a_{n} < \cdots,$ such that inifinite sequence of positive integers $ a_{1},\frac {a_{1} \plus{} a_{2}}{2},a_{2},\frac {a_{2} \plus{} a_{3}}{2},a_{3},\frac {a_{3} \plus{} a_{4}}{2},\cdots$ has the same color.

1987 IMO Shortlist, 18

Tags: combinatorics , partition , coloring , ramsey theory , set systems

For any integer $r \geq 1$, determine the smallest integer $h(r) \geq 1$ such that for any partition of the set $\{1, 2, \cdots, h(r)\}$ into $r$ classes, there are integers $a \geq 0 \ ; 1 \leq x \leq y$, such that $a + x, a + y, a + x + y$ belong to the same class. [i]Proposed by Romania[/i]

1985 IMO Longlists, 41

Tags: combinatorics , point set , combinatorial geometry , ramsey theory

A set of $1985$ points is distributed around the circumference of a circle and each of the points is marked with $1$ or $-1$. A point is called “good” if the partial sums that can be formed by starting at that point and proceeding around the circle for any distance in either direction are all strictly positive. Show that if the number of points marked with $-1$ is less than $662$, there must be at least one good point.

1999 IMO Shortlist, 6

Tags: function , linear algebra , combinatorics , ramsey theory

Suppose that every integer has been given one of the colours red, blue, green or yellow. Let $x$ and $y$ be odd integers so that $|x| \neq |y|$. Show that there are two integers of the same colour whose difference has one of the following values: $x,y,x+y$ or $x-y$.

2017 Germany Team Selection Test, 2

Tags: combinatorics , coloring , ramsey theory

Let $n$ be a positive integer relatively prime to $6$. We paint the vertices of a regular $n$-gon with three colours so that there is an odd number of vertices of each colour. Show that there exists an isosceles triangle whose three vertices are of different colours.

1985 IMO Shortlist, 14

Tags: point set , combinatorial geometry , ramsey theory , combinatorics

A set of $1985$ points is distributed around the circumference of a circle and each of the points is marked with $1$ or $-1$. A point is called “good” if the partial sums that can be formed by starting at that point and proceeding around the circle for any distance in either direction are all strictly positive. Show that if the number of points marked with $-1$ is less than $662$, there must be at least one good point.

2017 Brazil Team Selection Test, 1

Tags: combinatorics , coloring , ramsey theory

Let $n$ be a positive integer relatively prime to $6$. We paint the vertices of a regular $n$-gon with three colours so that there is an odd number of vertices of each colour. Show that there exists an isosceles triangle whose three vertices are of different colours.

2000 Belarus Team Selection Test, 5.3

Tags: function , linear algebra , combinatorics , ramsey theory

Suppose that every integer has been given one of the colours red, blue, green or yellow. Let $x$ and $y$ be odd integers so that $|x| \neq |y|$. Show that there are two integers of the same colour whose difference has one of the following values: $x,y,x+y$ or $x-y$.

1992 IMO, 3

Tags: combinatorics , ramsey theory , graph theory , coloring , extremal combinatorics

Consider $9$ points in space, no four of which are coplanar. Each pair of points is joined by an edge (that is, a line segment) and each edge is either colored blue or red or left uncolored. Find the smallest value of $\,n\,$ such that whenever exactly $\,n\,$ edges are colored, the set of colored edges necessarily contains a triangle all of whose edges have the same color.

1986 IMO, 3

Tags: graph theory , combinatorics , coloring , ramsey theory , extremal combinatorics

Given a finite set of points in the plane, each with integer coordinates, is it always possible to color the points red or white so that for any straight line $L$ parallel to one of the coordinate axes the difference (in absolute value) between the numbers of white and red points on $L$ is not greater than $1$?

2021 European Mathematical Cup, 4

Tags: partition , combinatorics , coloring , ramsey theory

Let $n$ be a positive integer. Morgane has coloured the integers $1,2,\ldots,n$. Each of them is coloured in exactly one colour. It turned out that for all positive integers $a$ and $b$ such that $a<b$ and $a+b \leqslant n$, at least two of the integers among $a$, $b$ and $a+b$ are of the same colour. Prove that there exists a colour that has been used for at least $2n/5$ integers. \\ \\ (Vincent Jugé)

1978 IMO Shortlist, 10

Tags: graph theory , ramsey theory , combinatorics , extremal graph theory , extremal combinatorics

An international society has its members from six different countries. The list of members contain $1978$ names, numbered $1, 2, \dots, 1978$. Prove that there is at least one member whose number is the sum of the numbers of two members from his own country, or twice as large as the number of one member from his own country.

1978 IMO, 3

Tags: graph theory , ramsey theory , combinatorics , extremal graph theory , extremal combinatorics

An international society has its members from six different countries. The list of members contain $1978$ names, numbered $1, 2, \dots, 1978$. Prove that there is at least one member whose number is the sum of the numbers of two members from his own country, or twice as large as the number of one member from his own country.

2008 South East Mathematical Olympiad, 1

Tags: combinatorics , set systems , additive combinatorics , ramsey theory

Given a set $S=\{1,2,3,\ldots,3n\},(n\in N^*)$, let $T$ be a subset of $S$, such that for any $x, y, z\in T$ (not necessarily distinct) we have $x+y+z\not \in T$. Find the maximum number of elements $T$ can have.

1996 Tuymaada Olympiad, 3

Tags: combinatorics , combinatorial geometry , coloring , ramsey theory

Nine points of the plane, located at the vertices of a regular nonagon, are pairwise connected by segments, each of which is colored either red or blue. It is known that in any triangle with vertices at the vertices of the nonagon at least one side is red. Prove that there are four points, any two of which are connected by red lines.

1984 IMO, 3

Tags: geometry , combinatorial geometry , coloring , ramsey theory

Given points $O$ and $A$ in the plane. Every point in the plane is colored with one of a finite number of colors. Given a point $X$ in the plane, the circle $C(X)$ has center $O$ and radius $OX+{\angle AOX\over OX}$, where $\angle AOX$ is measured in radians in the range $[0,2\pi)$. Prove that we can find a point $X$, not on $OA$, such that its color appears on the circumference of the circle $C(X)$.

2008 China Team Selection Test, 3

Tags: search , arithmetic sequence , combinatorics , ramsey theory

Suppose that every positve integer has been given one of the colors red, blue,arbitrarily. Prove that there exists an infinite sequence of positive integers $ a_{1} < a_{2} < a_{3} < \cdots < a_{n} < \cdots,$ such that inifinite sequence of positive integers $ a_{1},\frac {a_{1} \plus{} a_{2}}{2},a_{2},\frac {a_{2} \plus{} a_{3}}{2},a_{3},\frac {a_{3} \plus{} a_{4}}{2},\cdots$ has the same color.

Russian TST 2017, P2

Tags: combinatorics , coloring , ramsey theory

Let $n$ be a positive integer relatively prime to $6$. We paint the vertices of a regular $n$-gon with three colours so that there is an odd number of vertices of each colour. Show that there exists an isosceles triangle whose three vertices are of different colours.

2017 Peru IMO TST, 6

Tags: combinatorics , coloring , ramsey theory

Let $n$ be a positive integer relatively prime to $6$. We paint the vertices of a regular $n$-gon with three colours so that there is an odd number of vertices of each colour. Show that there exists an isosceles triangle whose three vertices are of different colours.

2017 Taiwan TST Round 3, 1

Tags: combinatorics , coloring , ramsey theory

Let $n$ be a positive integer relatively prime to $6$. We paint the vertices of a regular $n$-gon with three colours so that there is an odd number of vertices of each colour. Show that there exists an isosceles triangle whose three vertices are of different colours.

1992 IMO Longlists, 10

Tags: combinatorics , ramsey theory , graph theory , coloring , extremal combinatorics

Consider $9$ points in space, no four of which are coplanar. Each pair of points is joined by an edge (that is, a line segment) and each edge is either colored blue or red or left uncolored. Find the smallest value of $\,n\,$ such that whenever exactly $\,n\,$ edges are colored, the set of colored edges necessarily contains a triangle all of whose edges have the same color.

2021 Cyprus JBMO TST, 4

Tags: combinatorics , pigeonhole principle , ramsey theory

We colour every square of a $4\times 19$ chess board with one of the colours red, green and blue. Prove that however this colouring is done, we can always find two horizontal rows and two vertical columns such that the $4$ squares on the intersections of these lines all have the same colour.