After attending the programming camps in Paphos and Wroclaw, the dETHroners team, consisting of Michal, Paula, Theodor, and coach Ahmet, traveled to Astana to participate in the 48th Annual World Finals of the International Collegiate Programming Contest.
The level of competition was particularly high for the strong teams, and dETHroners finished with a rank of 19 out of 141 universities. Although the ETH team solved the same number of problems as the other bronze-medal team, they missed out on a medal due to time penalties. However, they were awarded ‘Highest Honors’, a distinction given to all teams that solved 7 problems during the contest but didn’t receive a medal because of time penalties. Several top European teams also solved 7 problems, and the European region winner was determined by time penalties as well, with ETH achieving Rank 4 in Europe.
The dETHroners deserve a lot of congratulations, as Rank 19 is the second-best result in ETH Zurich’s history at the ICPC World Finals.
The high-rise skylines of the city, the cold weather, chaotic traffic, great food, and fun activities at the event venue—like making necklaces with a giant hammer—and the transportation bus generously offering us free wifi (no further details on this :)) all created unforgettable memories from the World Finals.
We’ve heard two rumors about next year’s World Finals location. One suggests it will be in South America, and the other hints at Shanghai. Let’s see which one is true—until then, see you next time!