With students racing down the hallway in office chairs, sporting lab coats and goggles, the third annual ChemOlympics has come to an end. Students competed in chemistry themed races in an attempt to win the coveted stuffed mole, a beaker mug and bragging rights.
The chemistry department advertises their largest event primarily to majors and minors, but encourages everyone to join. Any student who passed by the third floor of the Roger Milliken Science Center was asked if they wanted to participate and to grab a plate of food.
“The event was invented by Dr. Davis and Dr. Bostic. They made up the ChemOlypmics three years ago. We normally try to have six teams of three, and they compete in seven events” chemistry administrative assistant, Tracey Southers, said.
It is not just for majors, it’s for anybody that likes chemistry. We wanted to get more excitement built up in the major. One of our guys competing this year was a freshman and just hopped on at the very tail end of it and he’s still with us– he became a major, that’s the goal.”
The starting competition consisted of each team having a member race to put on a lab coat and goggles and then pedal backwards in a rolling chair down the hallway. From here, the games only got more competitive.
“My team actually won first place, it was super exciting since it was my third time competing. My favorite game is always the molecule building competition, where teams compete to see who can most quickly create the most accurate 3d model of a molecule put onto the board. This year, the molecule in question was serotonin,” Owen Neiders ‘26 said.
For Neiders, one of the highlights, besides taking home the gold, is being able to see the chemistry department in a different light.
“My favorite part of the event is that it showcases the chemistry department’s fun side. A lot of people see chemistry as hard classes and labs, but there’s a lot of fun things that come from it. It’s always my favorite event that the Wofford chemistry department puts on,” Neiders said.
For Southers, while she isn’t competing, she gets to stand back and watch the normally stressed out students just relax a little.
“The camaraderie [is what I enjoy]– they get everybody together and see each other outside and in a less stressful environment where they can have fun,” Southers said.
The joyfulness was palpable on the third floor, with laughter echoing and students cheering. The department hosts events like these in an effort to keep students having fun and encouraged through their studies. While ChemOlympics may be the most publicized event, there are others that are just as noteworthy.
“This is the biggest event, we do have several other ones. In a few weeks we have ‘Apps with Alumni’ where we bring some alumni in to talk about graduate school versus going straight into the field. We usually try to do one a month,” Southers said.
The chemistry department and its students get passionate, and it’s clear. The department hopes to host the fourth annual ChemOlympics during the 2025-26 school year.
