In a historic milestone for the global mathematics community, Hong Wang has become the first Chinese woman to be awarded the Fields Medal, often described as the Nobel Prize of mathematics. The award, which recognizes exceptional achievement and future potential in mathematicians under 40, was presented during the opening ceremony of the International Congress of Mathematicians in Philadelphia on Thursday. This year marks only the third time a woman has received the honor in the award’s 90-year history.
Wang is joined by fellow Chinese mathematician Yu Deng, along with American John Pardon and Canadian Jacob Tsimerman, as this year's recipients. Ulrike Tillmann, vice-president and incoming president of the International Mathematical Union (IMU), the institution responsible for organizing the awards, praised the winners, stating, "All four mathematicians have made tremendous contributions to their respective fields." She added that it is wonderful to see another woman winning the medal, noting that the community should feel it has become a normal thing for women to contribute at the highest level of the profession.
Originally from China's mountainous Guilin City, Hong Wang gained international recognition for her work on the century-old Kakeya conjecture in three dimensions, a project she tackled alongside Joshua Zahl from the University of British Columbia. The IMU noted that her research has been instrumental in opening doors for numerous theorems and conjectures in harmonic analysis, partial differential equations, geometric measure theory, and other fields.
Reflecting on her career in an IMU video, Wang recalled the joy she felt as a child when solving her first mathematical problem, noting that it provided her with a clearer understanding of the subject. She currently researches at both NYU and France's Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques.
Yu Deng, who hails from the tech hub of Shenzhen, was recognized for his groundbreaking work in axiomatizing physics. His research aims to establish mathematical rules to explain fundamental branches of science. The IMU described his work, co-authored with the University of Michigan's Zaher Hani and Xiao Ma, as a significant leap forward in a centuries-long quest by mathematicians and physicists to derive the basic laws of physics from first principles.
For Deng, the pursuit of mathematics is driven by raw curiosity rather than fame or money. He noted in an IMU video that his understanding of the physical universe on a mathematical level remains small, and he is driven by the happiness experienced when a plan works perfectly and he can solve the questions he faces.
The victory marks the first time two Chinese scholars have won the prize simultaneously, bringing the total number of Chinese-born recipients to three. Previous winners include Yau Shing-Tung, who was the first ethnic Chinese mathematician to win in 1982, and Australian-born Terence Tao, who received the honor in 2006. While both Wang and Deng began their academic journeys at Beijing's prestigious Peking University, their advanced training and research were largely conducted in the United States and Europe.
After two years in Beijing, Deng transferred to MIT before completing a PhD at Princeton University. Wang graduated from Peking University and continued post-graduate study in France before finishing her mathematics PhD at MIT. Both researchers currently work outside of China.
The announcement of the winners followed a premature leak, as a vulnerability on the International Congress of Mathematicians' website allowed coders to identify the recipients before the official ceremony. News of the win sparked significant celebration on Chinese social media platforms. Users from Guangdong and Henan provinces expressed pride, with some calling it a way of bringing honor to the country.
However, the news also prompted discussions regarding the trend of researchers leaving China for Western institutions. Some social media users questioned why scholars leave after completing undergraduate degrees in China, while others suggested that breaking up the monopoly of academic cliques should be a priority for Chinese higher education.
Despite these criticisms regarding a brain drain, the awards come at a time when several high-profile Chinese scholars have returned home, some citing an increasingly hostile academic environment in America. In 2025, Beijing launched a special "K-visa" to attract foreign tech experts, and a project called QiMing, run by China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, also seeks to recruit foreign and overseas Chinese STEM talent.
In addition to the Fields Medal, the IMU also announced winners of other top honors, including Oxford University's Graeme Segal, who received the Chern Medal, and the University of Washington's Shayan Oveis Gharan, who received the Abacus Medal. Along with the prestige, each Fields Medalist receives a gold medal depicting the ancient Greek mathematician Archimedes and a cash prize of 15,000 Canadian dollars, or approximately 11,000 USD.
