The International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM), the most significant meeting in pure and applied mathematics organized every four years, was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from August 1st to 9th, 2018. It has brought together mathematicians from all over the world to share the achievements and progress in their respective fields.

At this conference, 4 mathematicians were awarded the Fields Medal, which is the most prestigious award in mathematics. 180+ outstanding mathematicians distributed in 19 sections were invited to be ICM speakers. For this year, there are 12 Chinese mathematicians named on the impressive list and 8 of them are alumni of Peking University, namely, Zhang Wei in number theory, Xu Chenyang and Yun Zhiwei in algebraic geometry and complex geometry, He Xuhua in Lie group, You Jiangong in dynamical systems and ordinary differential equations, and Zhang Pingwen, Tang Tao, Jin Shi in numerical analysis and scientific computing.

Previously, there were a number of PKU teachers and alumni who have been invited to be ICM speakers, including: Tian Gang (twice), Zhang Yitang, Chang Kung-ching, Ding Weiyue, Wang Shicheng, E Weinan, Wu Sijue, Ge Liming, Liu Kefeng, Liu Xiaobo, Xu Jinchao, Li Tao.