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IMO Team Selection Test 2

Geometry Difficulty 8.3 Shortlist Prove it Netherlands

A triangle ABCABC and a point DD on the line segment ACAC are given. Let MM be the midpoint of CDCD and let Ω\Omega be the circle through BB and DD tangent to ABAB. Let EE be the point such that △MDB∼△MBE\triangle MDB \sim \triangle MBE and such that DD and EE lie on opposite sides of the line MBMB.
Show that EE lies on Ω\Omega if and only if ∠ABD=∠MBC\angle ABD = \angle MBC.

Solution

We first prove that △CMB∼△DBE\triangle CMB \sim \triangle DBE. Since DD and EE lie on opposite sides of MBMB, it holds that ∠DBE=∠DBM+∠MBE=∠DBM+∠MDB=∠CMB\angle DBE = \angle DBM + \angle MBE = \angle DBM + \angle MDB = \angle CMB because of the given similarity and the exterior angle theorem. Moreover, it holds that
∣DB∣∣BE∣=∣MD∣∣MB∣=∣CM∣∣MB∣ \frac{|DB|}{|BE|} = \frac{|MD|}{|MB|} = \frac{|CM|}{|MB|}
because of the similarity defining EE and the fact that MM is the midpoint of CDCD. It now follows that △CMB∼△DBE\triangle CMB \sim \triangle DBE (sas). In particular, it follows that ∠BED=∠MBC\angle BED = \angle MBC. Therefore ∠ABD=∠MBC\angle ABD = \angle MBC if and only if ∠ABD=∠BED\angle ABD = \angle BED. By the inscribed angle theorem (tangent case), this holds if and only if ABAB is tangent to the circumcircle of △BDE\triangle BDE. The circle through BB and DD tangent to ABAB is unique, and has as centre the intersection of the perpendicular bisector of BDBD and the line through BB perpendicular to ABAB. So ABAB is tangent to the circumcircle of △BDE\triangle BDE if and only if EE lies on Ω\Omega. □\square

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