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<p>That’s not really the best standard of comparison. There are plenty of people out there who can barely spell their own name - it doesn’t mean I’m gonna consider myself a great writer just because I can.</p>
<p>That being said, competition-style math is pretty different from “real” math (however you define that). The mathematician Terrence Tao has a great blog post on this subject: [Advice</a> on mathematics competitions | What’s new](<a href=“http://terrytao.■■■■■■■■■■■■■/career-advice/advice-on-mathematics-competitions/]Advice”>Advice on mathematics competitions | What's new).</p>
<p>I think competitions are probably more important in high school because there usually aren’t any alternatives for people who are interested in math. Once you’re in college that’s no longer the case.</p>
<p>EDIT: Another useful link: <a href=“http://lesswrong.com/lw/2v1/great_mathematicians_on_math_competitions_and/[/url]”>http://lesswrong.com/lw/2v1/great_mathematicians_on_math_competitions_and/</a></p>