Poway math whiz does well in China competition

After a long and arduous trip to a prestigious math competition in China, 11-year-old Poway resident Ben Lou is home a winner.

Ben received 13th place out of about 270 competitors at the 2014 World Mathematics Team Championship, which was held in Beijing in November. Ben was one of six Americans on the junior team competing.

Ben said competing in China against over 200 other kids was scary. “I didn’t think I could do well,” he said.

Ben’s 13th place finish earned him a gold medal, the only gold medal on the US junior team.

For Ben and his mother, Jenny Huang, getting to China was more difficult than the competition itself. Ben has spinal muscular atrophy, a genetic condition that affects the control of muscle movements. Ben is quadriplegic and uses an electric wheelchair.

While Ben has traveled to China previously, this time it was only him and his mother, who was responsible for disassembling and reassembling his electric wheelchair for transport, as well as transporting his manual wheelchair, oxygen, their luggage and Ben himself. “The trip was difficult,” said Huang, who was stuck on both the plane and in the airport in Beijing for several hours while she tried to retrieve pieces of the disassembled wheelchair from her checked luggage and assemble it by herself.

It took almost five hours for Ben to compete, as he had to have a translator, said Kathryn Humberstone, who is Ben’s home-schooling instructor.

Ben was also honored in China for how he has overcome his disability in order to study and compete in the math competition. He was presented with a special “Blooming Life” trophy at the event.

“In China, kids like Ben aren’t treated well,” said Humberstone, “so he was like a celebrity there. (The competition) has never had a kid in a wheelchair attend before.”

A number of Chinese children with spinal muscular atrophy took pictures holding signs with greetings or wishes for Ben, which were shown on a screen while Ben spoke as he received his award. “It was very emotional,” said Huang.

“Ben was going for a math competition, but he was an inspiration for so many in China,” said Humberstone.

Ben also was interviewed by several Chinese newspapers, magazines and other media outlets. “(The media) was very excited about what Ben achieved,” said Huang. “He talked about it in his interviews, about having a disease but being smart, and how he (and other kids like him) need outside stimulation.”

Ben said it felt “pretty good” to receive the award and all the media attention in China.

His favorite part of the competition was when he got to visit a five-star hotel after it was finished, as well as getting to go see the Great Wall of China.

Though Ben wouldn’t call math his favorite subject, as he doesn’t like to pick favorites, it’s something he excels at. He does all the calculations in his head, as it is difficult for him to hold a pencil and write. Ben is home-schooled through the Poway Unified School District’s K-8 Poway Home Education Program, though he goes to Meadowbrook Middle School once a school day to sing.

Home-schooling allows his mother to be sensitive to his energy levels, and they use videos to allow him to learn while attending to his massages and exercises. Ben also uses a voice recognition program to complete writing assignments and write poetry and short stories.

Ben, who was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy when he was 1 year old, has home-schooled since he was in second grade. Even as a child, he showed a gift for math. “He’d look at math and just inhale it,” said Humberstone. “Jenny would go online and find high-level math for him (to work on).”

Ben is now preparing for another math competition in the spring, though this one will require much less travel as it will take place in Southern California. There is also another competition taking place in China during the summer, though Huang said she wasn’t sure if Ben would attend. “It’s more difficult to bring him to the competition than the competition itself is,” she said.