Olympiad Maths Prep

Track / Stage 7 / 186 of 300 #1586 of 2000

Problem 1586

National olympiad second round; IMO P1/P4
Geometry Difficulty 7.4 Prove it

In the triangle ABCABC let BB' and CC' be the midpoints of the sides ACAC and ABAB respectively and HH the foot of the altitude passing through the vertex AA. Prove that the circumcircles of the triangles ABCAB'C',BCHBC'H, and BCHB'CH have a common point II and that the line HIHI passes through the midpoint of the segment BC.B'C'.

This one wants a proof. Work it on paper, read the official solution, then mark yourself honestly — the ladder only means something if the record is true.

Official solution

1. Applying Miquel's Theorem:
According to Miquel's Theorem, the circumcircles of triangles ABCAB'C', BCHBC'H, and BCHB'CH intersect at a common point II. This establishes the existence of the point II where these three circumcircles intersect.

2. Defining Midpoints and Points:
Let MM be the midpoint of the segment BC\overline{B'C'}. We need to show that the line HIHI passes through MM and that BCHIB'CHI is cyclic.

3. Intersection of Line and Circumcircle:
Let I=HM(ABC)I' = \overline{HM} \cap (ABC). We aim to prove that BCHIB'CHI' is cyclic.

4. Symmedian Property:
Note that AI\overline{AI'} is a symmedian in ABC\triangle AB'C'. This can be shown by reflecting over the perpendicular bisector of BC\overline{B'C'} or by using bc\sqrt{bc} inversion and angle chasing.

5. Similarity of Triangles:
We have IBMIAC\triangle IB'M \sim \triangle I'AC'. This similarity implies that the angles are preserved, specifically:
HIB=MIB=CIA=CBA=HCB \measuredangle HI'B' = \measuredangle MI'B' = \measuredangle C'I'A = \measuredangle C'B'A = \measuredangle HCB'
This chain of equal angles confirms that BCHIB'CHI' is cyclic.

6. Conclusion:
Since BCHIB'CHI' is cyclic, and II' lies on the circumcircle of ABC\triangle ABC, it follows that I=II = I'. Therefore, the line HIHI passes through the midpoint MM of the segment BC\overline{B'C'}.

\blacksquare

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