A nine-year-old prodigy from Hong Kong is thought to have set a record for the youngest person to gain two As in the British A-levels.
Indonesian-Chinese March Boedihardjo, who left Hong Kong two years ago to attend a one-to-one tutorial college in Oxford, gained an A in mathematics and another one in further mathematics. He scored a B in statistics.
March was just nine years and three months old when he sat the exams, one month younger than the person believed to have held the record for 19 years.
Ganesh Sittampalam is often reported by British media as the youngest person previously to have passed a British A-level when he scored an A in mathematics in 1988 when he was nine years and four months old. But this is impossible to confirm as British exam authorities do not release candidates' personal data.
March, who returned to Hong Kong earlier this summer, has attained a merit in Advanced Extension Award (AEA) mathematics, a set of special papers designed to challenge able A-level students and allow them to show a greater depth of understanding than required at A level.
The qualifications are graded at merit and distinction.
Tony Boedihardjo, March's father, said he was 'very happy' his son had set the record but would not allow him to be interviewed or photographed because 'I am worried a high profile could have a negative effect on his development'.