BAPCee

The committee Fully Connected Graph has successfully bid to host the Benelux Algorithm Programming Contest (BAPC 2024). This in-person event will bring together 50 teams and 230 attendees from leading universities in The Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg to compete in algorithmic problem-solving under stringent time and resource constraints. The contest will take place on 26th October 2024 in Groningen. In addition to being the most prestigious programming contest in the Benelux, BAPC provides qualification for the Northwestern Europe Regional Contest (NWERC), and hence for the ICPC World Finals (the oldest and most prestigious programming contest in the world).

RUG ranks as the second institution in the Benelux region for its number of titles, having six victories in the Dutch Programming Championship (currently BAPC). Despite this impressive record, the university's competitive programming scene had been quiet since the last notable achievements in 2008, when the team ".uit" clinched second place and the successful hosting of the BAPC in 2009. This period of inactivity persisted until 2021 when a resurgence in the community was sparked. The formation of the Fully Connected Graph, alongside a series of algorithmic events and the creation of the Algorithmic Programming Contests extracurricular course, breathed new life into RUG's competitive programming. These efforts led to the ability to host BAPC, after 15 years in Groningen, which represents an apogee for the community.