Cover image via NST / Intel Malaysia / Cilisos1. Faye Jong Sow Fei, 17, became the 1st Malaysian to have an asteroid named after her in recognition of her achievements at the 2014 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) for her environmental management project
Image via Intel Malaysia
The Lincoln Observatory Near-Earth Object Team (LINEAR) named an asteroid **[31460 Jongsowfei (1999 CV19)](http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=31460&linkId=15478905)** after the student from SMK Batu Lintang in Kuching, Sarawak in honour of her success at last year's ISEF.
Faye's 'Biowaste Materials as Eco-Friendly Mordant in Fabric Dye Process' project, which **exhibits the use of environmentally-friendly natural colourants to set dyes on cotton fabrics and took her 3 years of research**, earned her top awards at ISEF including the 'Environmental Management for Best of Category' and 'Grand Awards'.
2. Admon Lee Wen Xuan, 16, was named champion of the PowerPoint 2010 challenge at the Microsoft Office Specialist World Championship held in Dallas, Texas in August 2015
Image via New Straits Times
The competition, also known as the Microsoft Office Olympics, was incepted in 2002 with the aim to identify the best practitioners of Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel through a series of tests. The competition is held in tandem with the Adobe Certified Associate World Championship, which are meant to establish the best users of PhotoShop, Illustrator, and InDesign.
3. Wong Fu Kang, 16, became the first Malaysian to clinch not just one, but TWO gold medals in the Commonwealth Youth Games which was held in the Pacific nation of Samoa in September this year
Image via British International School, Phuket
Wong, a Year 11 student in the British International School in Phuket (BISP), raced to Malaysia's 1st gold medal in the Commonwealth Youth Games in the Men's 100m Breaststroke on 8 September.
On 9 September, he added to his medal tally with a gold in the 50m Breaststroke, and swam to take silver in the 200m Breaststroke the next day.
Wong had previously **broken the 15-year-old national record in the 100m Breaststroke** at the Malaysian Open Swimming Championship in March, beating Sabahan Elvin Chia's record to earn himself a spot in the 2015 SEA Games squad.
Image via The Star Online
4. Not only was the Kuching-based St. Joseph's School marching band the 1st and only non-US band to be invited to the US Band Association's Yamaha Cup, they also emerged as champions in their category and earned the highest score out of 57 competing school bands
Image via The Star Online
5. Melvin Gnai, 13, whose superb fingerstyle guitar-playing skills have cemented his prodigious reputation overseas, having won a number of competitions and performed on international stages
Image via Cilisos
In an interview with [Cilisos](http://cilisos.my/fuyoh-who-is-this-msian-kid-playing-the-guitar-like-a-champion/), Melvyn's mother revealed that **he only started playing the guitar 2 and a half years ago**. In fact, Melvyn actually started playing the piano at age 4 and the violin at age 6 before moving on to the guitar when he turned 11.
Besides participating and winning in competitions such as the American Protege Music Talent Competition (where he placed 1st in the guitar category in 2014 and 2nd on the ukulele category in 2015), **Melvyn has also performed in Amsterdam and New York**.
Some of Melvyn's performances are available on **[YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/user/daphnewcl/)**, but **the one video you should definitely see is this audition video that went viral in August**:
6. Child music prodigy Tengku Ahmad Irfan Tengku Ahmad Shahrizal, 16, got accepted to the world-famous Juilliard School in New York when he was merely 13 years old! He is currently pursuing a double major in piano and composition, as well as an elective in composing.
Image via Singapore Symphony Orchestra
**Watch him play with a fellow pianist during a Juilliard Composer's Concert in 2014**:
7. Lim Hui Xin, 12, has been participating (and winning) in drawing competitions both local and international since she was 8. So far, she has received more than 200 trophies for her achievements!
Image via Kwong Wah Daily
Hui Xin, a Year 6 student in SRJK (C) Sum Sun in Penang, has received a slew of accolades in both local and international drawing and colouring competitions with her delicate brushwork and dynamic paintings. **Among the awards she has received are 3rd place in the Hong Kong International Painting Competition (International Category), Grand Prix winner in The Small Montmartre of Bitola 2015, as well as the 1st prize and Individual Excellence Award in the Portugal World Painting Contest.**
Hui Xin, who also excels academically and dabbles in calligraphy and piano, has dreams of becoming an interior designer or a fashion designer.
Image via Kwong Wah Daily
Image via Kwong Wah Daily
8. Muhamad Danial Zohairen and Nur Anissa Yasmin Yasri, both 17, won the gold medal at an invention competition held in Geneva in April this year with their environmental-friendly Shereco tiles
Image via Bernama
The two 5th formers of Terendak MARA Junior Science College (MRSM) **defeated 700 other contestants at the International Exhibition Inventions of Geneva 2015**, which was held from 15 to 19 April.
9. R. Prevena and V. Sushmeetha, both 11, and R. Rasyikash, 13, won the Double Gold Award at the 2014 British Invention Show (2014) in London with their energy-saving drinks dispensing machine
From left: Prevena, Rasyikash and Sushmeetha celebrating their winning the Double Gold Award at BIS 2014 during their arrival at KLIA.
Image via The Star Online
10. Durgashini Srijayan, Kumurthashri Ponniah, and Sugheson Ganeson from SJK (T) Ramakrishna beat 300 contestants from all over the world to win the top prize at the 35th Beijing Youth Science Creation Competition (BYSCC) with their invention of a eco-friendly thermo container
Image via The Malaysian Times
