Maths Olympiad Prep

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Geometry Difficulty 5.8 AIME, harder Prove it Argentina

In the parallelogram ABCDABCD point GG is chosen on side ABAB. Consider the circle through AA and GG that is tangent to the extension of CBCB beyond BB at point PP. The extension of DGDG beyond GG intersects the circle at LL. If the quadrilateral GLBCGLBC is cyclic, prove that AB=PCAB = PC.

Solution

Let EE be the second common point of DADA and the circle. One can show that AA is between DD and EE. Denote ELG=α\angle ELG = \alpha, GLC=β\angle GLC = \beta. Since GLBCGLBC is a cyclic quadrilateral by hypothesis, we have GBC=GLC=β\angle GBC = \angle GLC = \beta; since ELGAELGA is also cyclic, DAG=α\angle DAG = \alpha. Thus α\alpha and β\beta are the measures of adjacent angles in a parallelogram, hence α+β=180\alpha+\beta = 180^{\circ}. It follows that EE, LL and CC are collinear.

Figure 1

Let LEA=θ\angle LEA = \theta, then LGB=θ\angle LGB = \theta as ELGAELGA is cyclic. Hence LGB=LDC=θ\angle LGB = \angle LDC = \theta due to ABCDAB \parallel CD.
Triangles EDCEDC and DLCDLC are similar as they share an angle at CC and CED=CDL=θ\angle CED = \angle CDL = \theta. The similitude gives CDCL=CECD\frac{CD}{CL} = \frac{CE}{CD}, or CD2=CLCECD^2 = CL \cdot CE. On the other hand, by power of a point, CP2=CLCECP^2 = CL \cdot CE. Hence CD=CPCD = CP. Since CD=ABCD = AB (opposite sides of a parallelogram), we obtain AB=CPAB = CP, as desired.

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