Pupils from Dyffryn Taf School in Whitland took part in the finals of the Royal Society of Chemistry Chemical Olympiad 2006 on Monday. The event took place in the Taliesin Theatre at Swansea University. The format for the Olympiad was that the pupils answered eight rounds of questions on a wide variety of chemistry topics, such as scientists, formulae and processes. Seven of the rounds were individual questions, with two being on the buzzer and one round being a team effort. Dyffryn Taf School have a strong history of success in this event and have previously won the event six times in the past 12 years. This year's team was made up of Josephine Maidment and Harry Kind from Year 9, Thomas White from Year 10, and Matthew Elms from Year 11 who captained the four. They were well supported on the day by 44 fellow pupils from Dyffryn Taf and also by headteacher Mr. Robert Newsome and head of science Mr. Tony Galvin. To reach this level in the competition, Dyffryn Taf had previously beaten Bro Myrddin away 22 - 55 in Round One, Dewi Sant at home 55 - 28 in Round Two, and Bishopston away 41 - 48 in Round Three. They faced Ffynnone in the semi-final and beat them 44 - 35. They were then through to the final where they were up against Milford Haven. The team gave an excellent performance and were crowned winners after an impressive 46 - 24 victory. The four members of the team were delighted with their achievement as was Mr. Galvin. He said: "The team performed superbly well over the five rounds averaging almost 50 points (an all- time high)." Each member of the team was presented with an individual cash prize and the school received a cheque for £200 and the event shield. As the school have now won the event on seven different occasions, the shield will now be kept at Dyffryn Taf On behalf of the winning team, Mr. Galvin said: "We are all extremely grateful for the organisation of the Chemical Olympiad competition by the RSC and to The Huntsman Corporation from Llanelli for their sponsorship". The team will now go on to represent the South and West Wales area at the National Top of the Bench Competition at the Science Museum, London, in March 2007.