🚀 Two Days. Twenty-One Students. Countless Moments of Pride: Zarkor at the World Scholar’s Cup! 🌍
Over two grueling, exhilarating, and unforgettable days, 21 Zarkor students put their knowledge, creativity, and courage to the test at the 2025 Petach Tikva Round of the World Scholar’s Cup (WSC)—and walked away with medals, memories, and a ticket to the Global Round!
The World Scholar’s Cup isn’t your average competition. It’s an academic decathlon of sorts, where students compete across four intense events:
Team Bowl – A high-speed general knowledge challenge that pushes teams to think fast and work together.
Team Debate – Three rounds of head-to-head debates, each with just 15 minutes of preparation, testing students’ logic, eloquence, and nerve.
Collaborative Writing – Teams craft thoughtful essays under pressure, balancing structure, creativity, and teamwork.
Scholar’s Challenge – A deep-dive multiple-choice exam that rewards critical thinking over simple recall.
Team Bowl – A high-speed general knowledge challenge that pushes teams to think fast and work together. Team Debate – Three rounds of head-to-head debates, each with just 15 minutes of preparation, testing students’ logic, eloquence, and nerve. Collaborative Writing – Teams craft thoughtful essays under pressure, balancing structure, creativity, and teamwork. Scholar’s Challenge – A deep-dive multiple-choice exam that rewards critical thinking over simple recall.Over the course of these two days, Zarkor students competed against over 600 peers and more than 200 teams, many from gifted and talented centers. But despite being among the youngest and working in mixed-ability groups, they didn’t just hold their own—they soared.
All 7 Zarkor Teams Qualified for the Global Round!That’s right—every single Zarkor team earned a spot at the Global Round, a truly remarkable accomplishment that speaks to their hard work, heart, and high-level thinking.
Competition Highlights
Team 197 (Ariel Ben Avi, Liv Atlan, Daniel Bar) took 1st place in the prestigious Ipaka Top Teams category, making them the top team in the entire competition.
Team 195 (Emma Taragan, Neta Wallach, Guy Rosianski) secured 8th place, showing off their remarkable teamwork and consistency.
In the Ipaka Scholars category (celebrating the top all-rounders), 15 of our 21 students medaled, with three placing in the Top 10:- Rani Avitan (7th)
- Elinor Goldfinger (8th)
- Lia Ben Dor (10th)
In the Team Bowl, all 7 teams won either gold or silver medals, with Team 198 (Agam Nagar, Elinor Goldfinger, Michal Zbarsky) placing 7th overall. In the high-pressure Team Debate, three teams earned medals (2 silver, 1 gold) despite only having six weeks of debate training! In Collaborative Writing, four students won individual medals (3 golds, 1 silver), with Ariel Ben Avi placing 22nd. Spotlight: Lia Ben Dor – A Zarkor Journey from Kindergarten to Top 10 ScholarOne of the most inspiring stories of the event belongs to Lia Ben Dor, a student who has been with Zarkor since kindergarten. From a non-English-speaking home and naturally shy, Lia stepped into this competition and shone like never before.
She ranked:
91st in Individual Debate
63rd in Writing Champions
10th overall in Ipaka Scholars—that’s the 10th-best all-rounder out of 600 students!
She also took home silver medals in both Team Bowl and Team Debate. Lia’s journey is proof that with the right support, nurturing environment, and belief in every child’s potential, extraordinary things can happen.
91st in Individual Debate 63rd in Writing Champions 10th overall in Ipaka Scholars—that’s the 10th-best all-rounder out of 600 students!She also took home silver medals in both Team Bowl and Team Debate. Lia’s journey is proof that with the right support, nurturing environment, and belief in every child’s potential, extraordinary things can happen.
This experience wasn't just about medals. It was about growth. Confidence. Grit. Connection. And most of all, the joy of learning, competing, and discovering what’s possible.
Zarkor students showed the world that when passion meets purpose—and when educators believe in every learner—even the youngest competitors can rise to the very top.
We couldn’t be prouder. Bring on the Global Round! 
