'Everything went well': Lander Frederickx from Heist-op-den-Berg takes silver at World Quiz Championship

Lander Frederickx from Heist-op-den-Berg has earned a silver medal at the World Quiz Championship, finishing second overall. The nuclear industry researcher scored 184 points out of a possible 240, placing him just behind the American winner, Victoria Groves, who achieved 191 points.

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Everything went well and I just had a very good day.

Frederickx described his performance with characteristic modesty, stating, "Everything went well and I just had a very good day." The World Quiz Championship is a global event held simultaneously across participating countries, with questions translated into local languages. This year, between 2,000 and 2,500 quizzers participated worldwide. In Belgium, approximately 100 participants gathered at De Wattenfabriek in Herzele.

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Halfway through after the first 4 categories, the answer sheets are improved and after each category, the one with the highest score must raise their arm, and I got to raise my arm a few times.

Throughout the competition, Frederickx felt confident about his standing. Answer sheets were graded after each of the four quiz rounds within the two one-hour segments, and he noted raising his arm multiple times to indicate the highest score in his section. Even seeing multiple world champion Ronny Swiggers perform less well than him reinforced his belief in a strong showing. It was only after scores from the United States were tallied that it became clear Groves had surpassed him, though Frederickx acknowledged the gap was significant.

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The damage in sports was very well limited compared to the rest of the top, and that undoubtedly contributed to the good score.

His strongest categories were science and entertainment, where he scored 26 out of 30. While sports remains his weakest area, he managed to limit the damage this year, which he believes contributed significantly to his overall success. Frederickx remains grounded about the achievement, viewing the result itself as the reward, rather than any physical prize, as he typically places between 10th and 20th in previous years.

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Such a quiz is a snapshot. It could just as easily be that next week I'm only 5th or 10th.