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The eight-day 24th International Congress of Mathematicians concluded here on August 28 with tributes from participants.

At the closing ceremony, John Palis, chairman of the International Mathematical Union (IMU), announced that John Ball, from the United Kingdom, was elected new chairman of the IMU at the 14th IMU General Assembly, which was held earlier in Shanghai.

Madrid, Spain, would host the next ICM from August 20 to 27, 2006, he announced.

Palis and Ball spoke highly of the Beijing ICM, expressing appreciation for the Chinese government's support and the good organization, especially the hard work of the volunteers.

According to the organizing committee, about 300 volunteers worked for the conference, most of them from prestigious universities, such as Beijing University and Qinghua, and some from abroad.

During the congress, France's Laurent Lafforgue and Vladimir Voevododsky, from Russia, were awarded the Fields Medal Prize, and Madhu Sudan, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, won the Nevanlinna Prize.

About 4,000 mathematicians from more than 100 countries and regions attended the gathering. Twenty mathematicians delivered one-hour plenary lectures and 174 gave 45-minute workshops. China's top science award winner Wu Wenjun and Nobel Prize winner John Nash presented public lectures.

At the closing ceremony, some mathematicians couldn't help making candid remarks, voicing their satisfaction and gratitude for the hospitality of the Chinese people as well as their high expectations for the development of mathematics.

Ma Zhiming, chairman of the organizing committee, said the congress not only "achieved what we had said", but also promoted "popularization of mathematics".

Palis said this congress not only enhanced friendship, but also increased "devotion to mathematics".

"It's a memorable congress," Ball said.