In light of the devastating impact of Hurricane Rafael on the island, students from the University of Havana have been awarded a special slot to participate in the World Semifinals of the International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC) in Brazil, scheduled for March 2025.
The ICPC Caribbean Steering Committee confirmed that due to the hurricane's damage, Cuba was unable to host the 2024 Caribbean Finals of the ICPC programming contest. As a result, ICPC LATAM has granted a special entry to the team "The Chefs" from the University of Havana, who emerged victorious in the Cuban qualifier on October 5, 2024. This ensures their participation in the World Semifinals in Brazil next year, according to a report from the state-run site Cubadebate.
This decision has gained support from institutions in the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago, and Antigua and Barbuda. Additionally, an exception has been made for Cuban students who were in their final year of eligibility to compete again next year.
Programming Contest Overview and Rules
The International Collegiate Programming Contest is an annual global competition focused on programming and algorithmic problem-solving among universities. It emphasizes teamwork, problem analysis, and rapid software development. The ICPC conducts autonomous regional contests across six continents, culminating in an annual world final. In 2018, the ICPC saw participation from 52,709 students representing 3,233 universities across 110 countries.
Each ICPC team is composed of exactly three university students who have been enrolled for less than five years. Students who have participated in two World Finals or five regional contests are ineligible for further participation. During the contest, teams are tasked with solving between 8 and 15 problems in about five hours, typically using programming languages like C, C++, Java, Ada, Python, or Kotlin. The solutions submitted are compiled and tested with specific input data; if a solution fails, teams are notified and may resubmit or attempt other problems.
Competition Dynamics and Recent Events
The winning team is determined by the number of problems solved. If there's a tie, the team that solved their problems in the shortest time is declared the winner. This year's final was held from September 15 to 20, 2024, in Astana, Kazakhstan.
The University of Holguín has been chosen to host the event in 2025, underscoring Cuba's commitment to fostering competitive programming skills despite recent setbacks.