Past events

International Anatomy Olympiad 2019- Anatomy Park

The IAO was first held in Tartu in May 2019. It was organized by second year medical students – Markus Tamm and his peers (see photo). A total of 40 first- and second-year medical students from Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania competed in the event. Knowledge of anatomy was put to the test in the form of various theoretical and practical tasks. For example, the competitors had to figure out neural pathways and were required to build a moving joint out of some wooden blocks. After a long day of intense work, the participants gathered at the Old Anatomical Theatre for a film gala and other social games. The event was recieved very positively. A member from the winning team, Samuel Rüsse, summed up the competition by highlighting how participation in the International Anatomy Olympiad strengthened friendships among teammates and fostered overall collegiality.

International Anatomy Olympiad 2020- Anatomy Theatre

This year’s olympiad took place in August and was organized by second year medical students – Jaanika Kilgi, Samuel Rüsse, Mihkel Hallen, Martti Vanker and Peeter Paul Kollist. A total of twenty-seven 1st and 2nd year medical students from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Finland competed in the event. Sweden and Poland also took an interest in participating in the IAO, but were unfortunately unable due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The olympiad was still a success in spite of the strict measures that were implemented to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

International Anatomy Olympiad 2021- Anatomy Cruise

International Anatomy Olympiad 2021 took our participants on a cruise. The practical tasks included every activity possible on a cruise, whether it was eating at a buffet, playing golf, or partying in a club. Anatomy Cruise was organized by 2nd year medical students Sirle Tobber, Rita Mürkel, Gerly Tohu, Kristiina Kingo, Rebecca Tamm and 4th year student Marcus Tamm. Our cruise turned out popular and more international than last year, including 1st and 2nd year medical students from Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Finland, and Russia.

International Anatomy Olympiad 2022- Anatomy Cinema

Anatomy Cinema was the biggest olympiad by number of participants and internationality yet. It was organized by 2nd year medical students Sonja Liis Kaara, Laura Marleen Männik, Mari-Liis Männard, Kristin Rossmann, Marie Elise Soomre and 3rd year student Rebecca Tamm. For the first time in the history of the International Anatomy Olympiad, in addition to medical students from Estonia, Latvia, Finland and Lithuania, there were participants from Slovenia and The Czech Republic. This year’s participants stepped into the scene of a movie. Movies varied from the good old classics (Titanic and Saw) to different cartoons (such as Ratatouille and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs) and Marvel movies.

International Anatomy Olympiad 2023 – Anatomy Games

Anatomy Games took place on August 25-26th, bringing together 36 participants from Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Finland, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic. This year was all about games… of course, with an anatomical twist. Participants got a glimpse of how to play chess with organs and how to explain muscle movements in Alias. Beyond the “classics”, have you ever played connect-the-correct-blood vessels dominoes? Or had to blindly guess organs by touch in order to save humanity from zombies? If not, be sure to stay close to our participants because after this olympiad they are definitely prepared for anything.

The olympiad was organized by 2nd and 4th year medical students Kertu Kallaste, Marta Kolga, Eliis Grigor, Emma Koppel, Sirle Tobber and Gerly Tohu. And to our joy – International Anatomy Olympiad 2023 marked the fifth anniversary of organizing the olympiad!

International Anatomy Olympiad 2024 – Anatomy Time Travel

In 2024, the International Anatomy Olympiad traveled through time – from the medicine of ancient Egypt to the Middle Ages, and from 19th century into the future! The competition took place on August 23-24th in Tartu, bringing together 11 teams from 8 different countries: Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Sweden, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Poland and Italy. 2024 welcomed back Sweden and greeted newcomers – Italy and Poland!

Anatomy Time Travel was organized by 3rd year medical students Kertu Kallaste, Lauren Mae, Karel Somelar, Gaida Kertu Roos and 2nd year students Karl Valter Oja and Kadri Liis Laas. The organizational team thanks all teams for participation and hopes to see even more countries represented next year!

International Anatomy Olympiad 2025 – The Library of Anatomy

The 7th edition of International Anatomy Olympiad was held in Tartu on 22-23rd of August 2025. It was organized by 2nd and 4th year medical students from University of Tartu: Marti Pastak, Kaisa Padur, Mikk Rooden, Rihard Laasma, Villem Kerge and Kertu Kallaste.

Olympiad brought together a total of 42 competitors from 8 countries – Estonia, Latvia, Finland, The Czech Republic, Slovenia, Italy, Ukraine and The United Kingdom. As this years theme was The Library of Anatomy, the teams solved medical mysteries and challenges hand-in-hand with characters from well-known novels, including Sherlock Holmes, Harry Potter and Edward&Jacob! The organizational team thanks all teams for participation and hopes to see even more new faces next year!