Maths Olympiad Prep

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Geometry Difficulty 8.4 Shortlist Prove it Saudi Arabia

Let ABCABC be an acute, non-isosceles triangle with M,N,PM, N, P as the midpoints of BC,CA,ABBC, CA, AB, respectively. Denote d1d_{1} as the line passing through MM and perpendicular to the angle bisector of BAC\angle BAC, and similarly define d2,d3d_{2}, d_{3}. Suppose that d2d3=Dd_{2} \cap d_{3} = D, d3d1=Ed_{3} \cap d_{1} = E, d1d2=Fd_{1} \cap d_{2} = F. Let I,HI, H be the incenter and orthocenter of triangle ABCABC. Prove that the circumcenter of triangle DEFDEF is the midpoint of segment IHIH.

Solution

Denote (Ia),(Ib),(Ic)(I_{a}), (I_{b}), (I_{c}) as the ex-circles with respect to angles A,B,CA, B, C of triangle ABCABC. It is easy to check that PM/(I)=PM/(Ia)\mathscr{P}_{M/(I)} = \mathscr{P}_{M/(I_{a})} and PM/(Ib)=PM/(Ic)\mathscr{P}_{M/(I_{b})} = \mathscr{P}_{M/(I_{c})}. Let O,KO, K be the circumcenters of triangles ABCABC and DEFDEF.

Hence, d1d_{1} is the radical axis of (I),(Ia)(I), (I_{a}) since d1IIad_{1} \perp II_{a}. Similarly for d2,d3d_{2}, d_{3}, which implies that D=d2d3D = d_{2} \cap d_{3} is the radical center of the three circles (I),(Ib),(Ic)(I), (I_{b}), (I_{c}). Thus, MDMD is the radical axis of (Ib),(Ic)(I_{b}), (I_{c}).

So we have MDIbIcMD \perp I_{b}I_{c}, but IbIcAII_{b}I_{c} \perp AI, EFAIEF \perp AI, then MDEFMD \perp EF leads to MDMD being the altitude in triangle DEFDEF.

Similarly for NE,PFNE, PF, so the three lines MD,NE,PFMD, NE, PF concur at point TT, which is the orthocenter of DEFDEF. The two triangles ABCABC and DEFDEF share the same nine-point circle (MNP)(MNP), so OHOH and KTKT share the midpoint, which is the circumcenter of triangle (MNP)(MNP). This implies that HK=TO\overrightarrow{HK} = \overrightarrow{TO}.

On the other hand, it is easy to check that TT is also the incenter of triangle MNPMNP. Then consider the homothety with center GG as the centroid of triangle ABCABC, ratio 2-2, then H:MA,NB,PC\mathscr{H}: M \rightarrow A, N \rightarrow B, P \rightarrow C implies that H:TI,OH\mathscr{H}: T \rightarrow I, O \rightarrow H. Hence, HI=2TO\overrightarrow{HI} = 2\overrightarrow{TO}.

Combine with the previous equality, we have HI=2HK\overrightarrow{HI} = 2\overrightarrow{HK}, so KK is the midpoint of the segment HIHI. \square

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