Two Chinese nationals have become the first Chinese citizens to receive the prestigious Fields Medal, marking a historic milestone for the country’s growing influence in global mathematics and scientific research.
Wang Hong and Deng Yu were announced on Thursday as two of the four recipients of the Fields Medal, the highest honour in mathematics awarded every four years by the International Mathematical Union to outstanding mathematicians under the age of 40. The other two winners are from Canada and the United States.
At 35, Wang also made history as only the third woman to receive the award since it was established 90 years ago.
The achievement has sparked widespread celebration across China, with Wang and Deng dominating discussions on the social media platform Weibo, where the announcement quickly became one of the most talked-about topics on Friday.
State media and major news outlets highlighted the significance of the awards, describing them as a major breakthrough for Chinese mathematics, even though both recipients built much of their academic careers abroad after graduating from Peking University.
“This is a landmark achievement for Chinese mathematics,” said one comment on social media that received thousands of views. “It’s the realization of a dream generations of Chinese mathematicians have shared: building China into a mathematical powerhouse!”
Many users also celebrated Wang’s success as an inspiration for women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
“A hard slap in the face to those who have long preached that boys are better at mathematics than girls,” another social media commentator wrote.
Wang, who was raised in Guilin in southern China and is now a professor at New York University and the Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques in France, received the honour for solving a long-standing problem in harmonic analysis and geometric measure theory.
Deng, 37, who grew up in Shenzhen and is currently a professor at the University of Chicago, was recognised for his groundbreaking contributions to partial differential equations.
The celebrations reflect the high regard for academic excellence in China, where leading scientists often enjoy celebrity status and students compete fiercely in one of the world’s most demanding university entrance examinations.
They also underscore Beijing’s long-term ambition to position China among the world’s leading nations in science, technology and fundamental research through sustained investment in universities, talent development and innovation.
Chinese leaders have consistently promoted scientific advancement as a key pillar of the country’s broader goal of national rejuvenation.
One state media commentary said the awards challenged longstanding perceptions about China’s role in mathematics.
“For a long time, there has been a stereotype in Western academia: China excels in competitive and applied mathematics, but lacks original breakthroughs in cutting-edge fundamental theories.”
“The emergence of Wang Hong and Deng Yu has finally filled this gap, marking a new standard for Chinese mathematics and effectively breaking down prejudices,” it added.
Chinese state media described Wang and Deng as the first Chinese nationals to receive the Fields Medal.
Chinese-born mathematician Shing-Tung Yau won the award in 1982 but was not a Chinese citizen at the time, while Australian-born mathematician Terence Tao, who is of Chinese descent, received the honour in 2006.
In an interview with a Chinese state-linked media outlet, Yau, now a professor at Tsinghua University in Beijing, said the recognition fulfilled a long-held aspiration of China’s mathematics community.
“We very much hope they will come back, because that is important for China,” he said, adding that he hoped in the future, “scholars trained entirely in China will also be able to win the Fields Medal.”
China has long sought to reverse the migration of its top academic talent to institutions in the United States and other countries as its own universities continue to strengthen their global standing.
Both Wang and Deng completed their advanced education overseas. Deng transferred from Peking University to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as an undergraduate before earning his PhD from Princeton University in 2015.
Wang obtained her master’s degree in France before completing her PhD at MIT in 2019. Following her victory, French President Emmanuel Macron personally congratulated her.
Reacting to the award, Wang credited the people she had worked with throughout her academic journey.
“Moments like this never belong to just one person. They are the culmination of years of chance encounters and unexpected questions that steer you in the right direction,” she said.
Deng also attributed the growing international recognition of young Chinese mathematicians to years of steady progress.
“After all, Chinese mathematicians have already done a great deal of excellent work in recent years, so it’s expected that someone will one day will become widely known.”
