Let be a triangle and let be the midpoint of the side . The parallels through to and cross the tangent at to circle at and , respectively. The circles and cross again at . Prove that the circles and are tangent.

Let be a triangle and let be the midpoint of the side . The parallels through to and cross the tangent at to circle at and , respectively. The circles and cross again at . Prove that the circles and are tangent.

The argument hinges on the four facts below:
(1) lies on circle and lies on circle .
(2) , and are collinear.
(3) and both lie on circle .
(4) is parallel to .
Assume these facts for the moment, to complete the solution as follows: By (3), the conclusion is equivalent to circles and being tangent; and by (4), these circles are similar from , whence the conclusion.
To prove (1), write .
As and are midlines in triangles and , respectively, .
Consequently, , so lies on circle . Similarly, lies on circle . This establishes (1).
To prove (2), note that is the radical axis of the circles and , so it is sufficient to show that has equal powers with respect to these circles. By (1), the two circles are and , respectively, so , as desired. This establishes (2).
To prove (3), note that , as is a midline in triangle , so . By (1), , so , implying that lies on circle . Similarly, lies on this circle. This establishes (3).
Finally, to prove (4), it is sufficient to show that and then apply Thales. As triangles and have the same -altitude and share the side ,
as lies on by (2).
Triangles and have equal areas, as they both have the same -altitude, and is the midpoint of . These triangles also share the side , so
Hence , so, by the preceding,
Similarly, , so , as stated. This establishes (4) and completes the solution.