Math Kangaroo was proposed by Peter O'Halloran, an Australian mathematician and teacher, in the 1980's. In 1991, this idea was taken up in Paris, France. Very quickly, it spread throughout Europe. The competition began to be called "Kangaroo" because of its Australian origin. The main purpose of Math Kangaroo is to promote mathematical thinking and stimulate an interest in math, by providing students with an opporrunity to compare their abilities against the abilities of other students, from different countries around the world. Math Kangaroo is now the largest math competition for school students in the world. As of now, it has been held in 108 countries and regions. In 2024, approximately 6 million students paricipated globally, with around 1.3 million students from Brazil. Traditional mathematical powerhouses such as Germany contributed approximately 800,000 parricipants, while Russia and the Czech Republic had around 400,000 parricipants each. Countries like France and Poland each had around 300,000 parricipants, while Kazakhstan, Austria, the Netherlands, and Belgium all had over 100,000 young students paricipating. Besides, the Math Kangaroo Activity has a history of over 20 years in the United States, with rapidly increasing annual paricipation, particularly in California, which has a significant Asian population. In this state, Math Kangaroo slots are in high demand.

Math Kangaroo Asia Camp To promote the elites' communication, deepen the dissemination of the "Association Kangourou sans Frontières", and aim to nurture future mathematicians, Math Kangaroo hosts the International Camps globally every summer, exclusively inviting award-winning participants (primarily focusing on gold and above awards). The content modules of Math Kangaroo International Camps across continents are generally consistent, with slight adjustments based on the mathematical resources of the host country.

In the summer vacation of 2024, Chinese participants who achieve gold or above award will have a unique opportunity to participate in the Math Kangaroo Asia Camp and Europe Camp. 2024 Math Kangaroo Asia Camp will be held in Hainan, China in summer vacation, planning to invite award-winning participants from Asian countries including China, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei, South Korea, India, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, and others. Chinese students will have the opportunity to engage in in-depth mathematical discussions under the guidance of internationally renowned mathematicians, participate in mathematical competitions and socialize with representatives from Asia.