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Geometry Difficulty 7.2 National olympiad, round 2 Prove it

Let ABCABC be a triangle, and let EE be the midpoint of [BC][BC]. Let mm be the perpendicular bisector of [AC][AC], and let DD be a point on mm such that the circumcircle of ABDABD is tangent to mm. Finally, let KK be the intersection point, other than AA, between the circumcircle of ABDABD and the line (AC)(AC), and let FF be the midpoint of [CK][CK]. Prove that the lines (DE)(DE) and (EF)(EF) are perpendicular.

Solution

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The first difficulty is to draw the figure: how to draw a point tangent to a line and passing through two given points? A common strategy in such cases is to reverse the drawing: start by placing points A,BA, B, and DD, then deduce the tangent mm and the point CC.
Let Ω\Omega and Ω\Omega' be the circumcircles of ABDABD and DEFDEF, and OO and OO' their centers. Our hard-earned figure suggests that Ω\Omega', mm, and (AC)(AC) are concurrent. This is not surprising: indeed, it is to be shown that C\mathcal{C}' is the circle with diameter [FD][FD], or that the midpoint of [AC][AC], which we will denote as AA', belongs to Ω\Omega'.
Now, the three points AA', EE, and FF are the midpoints of the segments [CA][CA], [CB][CB], and [CK][CK], respectively. The circumcircle of these three points, which we wish to prove is Ω\Omega', is therefore the image of Ω\Omega under the homothety centered at CC with a ratio of 1/21/2. Given the figure, it is therefore necessary to prove, if we denote KK' as the symmetric point of KK with respect to OO, that this homothety maps KK' to DD, i.e., that DD is the midpoint of [KC][K'C]. By construction, we already know that KDK^=90\widehat{KDK'} = 90^\circ.
We will now prove that (KD)(KD) is the bisector of CKK^\widehat{CKK'}, using angle chasing. First, since AKOAKO is isosceles at OO and (AK)(AK) and (DO)(DO) are perpendicular to mm, we know that

(KC,KK)=(KA,KO)=(AO,AK)=(OA,OD) (KC, KK') = (KA, KO) = (AO, AK) = (OA, OD)

Furthermore, since mm is tangent to Ω\Omega, we also know that

(KC,KD)=(KA,KD)=(DA,DA)=(DA,CA)+90=(DA,DO)+90. (KC, KD) = (KA, KD) = (DA, DA') = (DA, CA) + 90^\circ = (DA, DO) + 90^\circ.

Since ADOADO is isosceles at OO, we conclude as desired that

2(KC,KD)=2(DA,DO)=(DA,DO)+(AO,AD)=(OA,OD)=(KC,KK). 2(KC, KD) = 2(DA, DO) = (DA, DO) + (AO, AD) = (OA, OD) = (KC, KK').

Comment from the examiners: The problem was adequately addressed, with several copies reaching far and even concluding with simple observations about the figure, such as the right angle KDC^\widehat{KDC}. Few students thought to introduce the point KK' from the official solution; although introducing this point was not strictly necessary, all students who did so subsequently solved the problem and received excellent grades.
It can therefore be judicious to introduce new points, but many do so without a specific reason, simply to express an angle in a new way. Here, there are very strong reasons to want to introduce the point KK', and it is necessary to convince oneself of the possible utility of a point before introducing it, at the risk of getting lost in unnecessary considerations.

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Source: NuminaMath-1.5, licensed Apache-2.0. Statement and solution reproduced as published; topic and difficulty added by this site.