Sophie was one of four students selected to represent the country after competing in the 2009 Big Week Out in Perth.

Sophie was able to compete in the Big Week Out because of her high performance in geography and her results in tests.

``I was the top-scoring female geographer in Tasmania,'' she said.

Sophie discovered she was good at geography after choosing it as a subject at the Tasmanian Academy Hellyer campus last year.

``I chose it because it is a science of the world and I'm interested in the world,'' she said.

Geography covers an array of subjects including geography, population, urbanisation and climate change.

``Geography is much more than just maps,'' she said.

``A lot of people don't understand how extensive the subject is.''

There were 28 different countries competing in the Taiwan olympiad.

Students were rigorously tested through a written exam, field work and multimedia.

Sophie also performed strongly in the field work category, which involved visiting the Ghandu Wetlands in Taipei.

Students were required to use satellite maps and prompts to draw a relevant map of the area, marking different vegetation and land uses.

They were also asked questions about development and conservation in the area.

``Taiwan is a major site for the world's migratory birds,'' Sophie said.

``It is an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

``Birds flying between Japan and Australia will stop there.''

After the olympiad students were given the opportunity to travel around the coast of Taiwan.

Sophie said she enjoyed meeting different people in the competition.

``It was good to hang out with people my own age from different cultures,'' she said.

Sophie is considering studying law and international relations or law and science at university.

She said her understanding of geography would help with her general knowledge about the world.