VL: I started with math pretty early compared to other students from the German team–in my second grade. I was 8 or 9 years old, and it all started when my parents encouraged me. I was in an online math club that sent problems once a week, and you sent the answers back. I remember it was quite annoying for me at first because I would solve it with my father, and he would say, “Oh, this problem is so simple,” while I was sitting there not understanding what was happening.
VL: The most beautiful part of math is finding connections between the different areas. When I found out topology basically connects everything I studied before, I was quite amazed, and that's why topology, for me, is still a really beautiful topic. You can see these connections, for example, when you apply some algebra methods in geometry and realize, “Wow, that really works like that.”
The most interesting part is not the specific topic, it’s the connections.
VL: My first Olympiad was quite important for me. I mostly randomly came to it. I was doing competitive math, not for a long time at that point, maybe a couple of months, and I got third place. It was quite impressive for me that I could do that. Also, back then, there were not that many girls, like there are now, who were doing math. That's why I felt like, “I can do that.” And it inspired me to continue.
VL: One of my most bright memories from EGMO was the last day party. Basically, what you do is dance, eat, and talk to people. And that felt really, really nice because that also felt like the community of girls gathered together and that's nice to realize you're not alone there.
VL: Enjoy the process and don't think that the result matters that much. I'm not that competitive myself. If you're only looking forward to the result and you are not enjoying the process, you're not enjoying the math. Loving math is the most important thing.
VL: I had this kind of international experience even before I moved to Germany two years ago. So moving was already quite an international experience and I studied in an International Baccalaureate program—a high school program in English. Most of my class were international students.
That's why I had this kind of experience before competitions. But each time I go to different competitions, I try to talk to people because they have really different mindsets and perspectives. I'm just interested in how people see the world, how it is from their perspective—and to share mine, because I hope it can be interesting for others.
VL: I really enjoy studying history. I had an amazing teacher when I was younger, and I became really interested in history. Also, my mother is a history teacher, so it kind of was predictable. I studied Russian history, but I'm also interested in the history of Europe.
VL: Imagination in math is really important. I finished an art school program, and I think that helped me with geometry and trying to see how things would work. But overall, the difficulty of math is that you don't always have that special algorithm that will work. You may have some instruments or tools, but you should invent something in every problem. That's what makes math difficult, but also what makes it fascinating because you see the combination of ideas and maybe of new elements. It's necessary to have this creative element.
VL: I feel really, really excited. It was a long journey because I planned to go to university a year before because I already had my official Russian diploma. But I also don’t regret not going the year before. I learned a lot of important skills during school here in Germany. The school systems are quite different. In Germany, I learned how to present knowledge and all the social skills and soft skills.
In university math and in real math, you don't always know how difficult the problem is, which method to apply, and whether the solution even exists. It’s about investigating and embracing the unknown. I’m really looking forward to this process of investigation and the feeling of not knowing what will come next.
VL: Don't be too competitive and talk to people. That's quite important. Most of my friends I met during math competitions, and they’re really nice people. And we don’t always talk about math, as somebody could expect. You also need to be prepared for the hard work because it will not be easy, but sometimes you just need to have a rest. It's important to keep the balance and enjoy the process.
