<!-- .slide: id="intro" --> _ICPC India · 2026 cycle_ # Intro to ICPC 2026 Indian regionals, registration, selection, preparation, and stream/blog updates. <p class="social-links"> <a href="https://t.me/aryanc403yt" aria-label="Telegram"><i class="fa-brands fa-telegram"></i></a> <a href="https://yt403.com/discord" aria-label="Community Discord"><i class="fa-brands fa-discord"></i></a> <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/yt403" aria-label="LinkedIn"><i class="fa-brands fa-linkedin-in"></i></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/aryanc403" aria-label="Twitter"><i class="fa-brands fa-x-twitter"></i></a> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/aryanc403yt" aria-label="Instagram"><i class="fa-brands fa-instagram"></i></a> </p> Notes: Start by telling students that ICPC is a team contest, not just another online round. --- <!-- .slide: id="speaker" --> _Speaker_ ## Meet aryanc403 ### As a participant - **Champion:** Asia West · ICPC World Finals 2021 - **2nd runner-up:** CodeChef SnackDown Finals - **ex Grandmaster:** Codeforces - **7★:** CodeChef - **5×:** ICPC Regional Qualifier - **4th:** Gwalior 2020 - **10th:** Amritapuri 2020 - **7th:** Amritapuri 2019 ### On the other side - **Indian ICPC roles:** Committee panelist, contest admin, tester, and problem setter. - **Indian IOI Training Camp roles:** Committee panelist, tester, and problem setter.  Notes: Briefly introduce Aryan and connect the Asia West experience to the practical advice in this deck. --- <!-- .slide: id="stream-recording" --> _Stream recording_ ## Watch the full stream <iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sejESOCKNpU" title="Full stream recording" loading="lazy" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe> [Open the stream recording on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sejESOCKNpU) Notes: This video is a recording of the full stream. Use it as an alternative to presenting the slides live. --- <!-- .slide: id="what-is-icpc" --> _Core idea_ ## What is ICPC? The International Collegiate Programming Contest is an algorithmic programming contest for college students. - Teams of three represent their university. - Teams solve problems together under time pressure. - It is one of the oldest and most prestigious programming contests in the world. --- <!-- .slide: id="path-to-world-finals" --> _Roadmap_ ## Path to World Finals 1. **Preliminary** — Common India online preliminary contest. 2. **Regionals** — Onsite regional contest at selected Indian sites. 3. **Asia West** — Top teams move to Asia West Continent Championship. 4. **World Finals** — Regional winners and selected teams qualify onward. --- <!-- .slide: id="eligibility" --> _Eligibility_ ## Who Can Participate? - All team members must be enrolled in the same degree-granting institution. - A team consists of 3 student contestants. - A faculty coach registers the team in ICPC systems. - A student can be part of only one team in a contest year. Final eligibility is decided by the official ICPC rules and regional site. --- <!-- .slide: id="current-cycle-summary" --> _Eligibility_ ## Current-Cycle Summary For ICPC Regionals 2026/27, a student must meet the basic enrollment rules and one of these period-of-eligibility rules: - First began post-secondary studies in 2022 or later, or was born in 2003 or later. - Eligibility is determined as of the first qualifying contest or 1 October 2026, whichever favors the student. - A person who has participated in 2 ICPC World Finals can no longer participate. - A person who has participated in 5 regional contest years usually can no longer participate. [ICPC Regional Rules 2026/27](https://icpc.global/regionals/rules) --- <!-- .slide: id="indian-regional-sites" --> _India_ ## Indian Regional Sites in 2026 | Regional site | Host and locations | Onsite capacity | | --- | --- | --- | | [Amritapuri](https://amritaicpc.in/) | Amrita University · Kollam, Bengaluru, Coimbatore, Mysuru | 350+ seats · 20 all-female team slots | | [Chennai](https://icpcchennai.vercel.app/) | SRM Institute of Science and Technology · Chennai | 120 seats · 4 all-female team slots | | [Kanpur](https://kanpur.indiaicpc.in/) | CSJM University, IIT Gandhinagar, IIIT Pune · Kanpur, Gandhinagar, Pune | Total not announced · 5 all-female team slots | | [Mathura](https://mathuraicpc.in/) | GLA University · Mathura | 100 seats · 5 all-female team slots | --- <!-- .slide: id="preliminary-to-regionals" --> _Contest flow_ ## Preliminary to Regionals ### Common preliminary - Online contest date: 3 October 2026. - Online contest of around 3 hours. - Single common contest for all Indian regional sites. ### Onsite regionals - Usually around 5 hours. - Usually around 8–12 problems. - Teams can apply to at most 2 Indian regional sites. --- <!-- .slide: id="common-india-preliminary" --> _Selection_ ## Common India Preliminary - Common online contest for all Indian regional sites: Kanpur, Mathura, Chennai, and Amritapuri. - Online contest date: 3 October 2026. - A team may register for at most two Indian regional sites. - Registration and preliminary fee payment are separate for each selected site. - Each site prepares its own onsite selection result from teams registered for that site. --- <!-- .slide: id="amritapuri-regional" --> _Selection criteria_ ## Amritapuri Regional [amritaicpc.in](https://amritaicpc.in/) ### Dates and seats - Registration: 15 June – 25 September 2026. - Onsite regional contest date: 1–2 January 2027. - Locations: Kollam, Bengaluru, Coimbatore, Mysuru. - Seats: 350+ onsite slots. - All-female team slots: 20. ### Selection formula - Selection is based on preliminary performance. - Usually a mix of top-ranked teams and highest-ranked teams from colleges. - Detailed onsite selection formula: not announced yet. --- <!-- .slide: id="chennai-regional" --> _Selection criteria_ ## Chennai Regional [Chennai selection criteria](https://icpcchennai.vercel.app/contest-info/selection-criteria) ### Dates and seats - Registration: 1 August – 25 September 2026. - Onsite regional contest date: 10–11 December 2026. - Location: SRMIST Chennai. - Seats: 120 total onsite slots. - All-female team slots: 4. ### Selection formula - Discard teams solving zero problems. - Select top 20 teams overall. - Fill remaining 96 slots institute-wise. - Fill 4 all-female team slots similarly. --- <!-- .slide: id="kanpur-regional" --> _Selection criteria_ ## Kanpur Regional [kanpur.indiaicpc.in](https://kanpur.indiaicpc.in/) ### Dates and seats - Registration: 6 August – 25 September 2026, 5:00 PM IST. - Fee payment deadline: 26 September 2026, 5:00 PM IST. - Onsite regional contest date: 22–23 December 2026. - Locations: Kanpur, Gandhinagar, Pune. - Total onsite seats: not yet announced. - All-female team slots: 5. ### Selection formula - Selection is based on preliminary performance. - Slots are expected to increase significantly because Kanpur moved from one site to three sites. - Detailed onsite selection formula: not announced yet. --- <!-- .slide: id="mathura-regional" --> _Selection criteria_ ## Mathura Regional [mathuraicpc.in](https://mathuraicpc.in/) ### Dates and seats - Registration: 6 August – 25 September 2026, 5:00 PM IST. - Fee payment: 15 August – 27 September 2026, 5:00 PM IST. - Onsite regional contest date: 27–28 December 2026. - Location: GLA University, Mathura. - Seats: 100 total onsite slots. - All-female team slots: 5. ### Selection formula - Discard teams with zero preliminary solves. - Select top 15 teams directly. - Remove them, then rank institute toppers by preliminary performance. - Fill remaining slots, repeating institute-wise backfill if needed. - Fill 5 all-female slots similarly afterward. --- <!-- .slide: id="asia-west-championship" --> _Next stage_ ## Regionals to Asia West Championship ### Selection process - Teams are invited based on performance at their regional contest site. - Only the top few teams from each site are selected. - Minimum 5 teams from each site are eligible. - The RCD selects teams using the regional contest ranklist. ### Important rules - Champion teams get World Finals slots, but still participate in AWC. - Other teams from champion institutes are not eligible for AWC. - Team composition cannot be changed. - AWC date: 20–21 March 2027. [icpcwestasia.netlify.app](https://icpcwestasia.netlify.app/) --- <!-- .slide: id="world-finals" --> _Selection_ ## Regionals to World Finals ### To Asia West Top teams from each Asia West regional site are selected for the Asia West Championship. 2027 host sites: Greater Noida, Dhaka, Topi, and Tehran. ### To World Finals Regional winners qualify directly, then additional teams qualify through championship ranking and slot allocation. Selection criteria: [icpcwestasia.netlify.app](https://icpcwestasia.netlify.app/) --- <!-- .slide: id="registration" --> _Registration_ ## How to Register 1. Each contestant creates an account at [icpc.global/register](https://icpc.global/register). 2. Ask a professor to act as coach. 3. The coach creates the team and adds all contestants. 4. Choose up to two Indian regional sites. 5. Pay separately for each regional site. 6. Submit payment confirmation if required by the site. --- <!-- .slide: id="registration-links" --> _Links_ ## Registration Links - [ICPC Global · icpc.global](https://icpc.global/) - [Amritapuri · amritaicpc.in](https://amritaicpc.in/) - [Kanpur · kanpur.indiaicpc.in](https://kanpur.indiaicpc.in/) - [Chennai · icpcchennai.vercel.app](https://icpcchennai.vercel.app/) - [Mathura · mathuraicpc.in](https://mathuraicpc.in/) - [Asia West · icpcwestasia.netlify.app](https://icpcwestasia.netlify.app/) --- <!-- .slide: id="preparation" --> _Preparation_ ## How to Prepare - **Solve past ICPC contests with your team.** This most closely matches the real contest. - **Upsolve everything you could not solve.** Learn concepts and techniques from mistakes. - **Get extremely fast at easy problems.** A/B-level problems can change your rank. - **Practice as a team.** Simulate 3 people with 1 computer and improve communication. - **Practice consistently.** Use past ICPC contests, Universal Cup, Indian ICPC Camp 2026, ICPC Camp, Codeforces/AtCoder, and problems 200–300 rating above your level. More preparation guidance: [yt403.com/discord](https://yt403.com/discord), in the “roadmap-to-red-in-2-mins” channel. --- <!-- .slide: id="practice-contests" --> _Resources_ ## Practice Contests for Regionals - [List of ICPC India Contests](https://codeforces.com/blog/entry/105000) - [Codechef sheet with ICPC problems](https://www.codechef.com/practice/icpc) - [Indian ICPC Camp 2026](https://codeforces.com/blog/entry/155816) - [Universal Cup](https://ucup.ac/) - [QOJ Judge](https://qoj.ac/) - [Open Cup Contests](https://codeforces.com/blog/entry/84466) - [Petrozavodsk Contests](https://codeforces.com/blog/entry/84489) --- <!-- .slide: id="codebook" --> _Resources_ ## Codebook - A pre-prepared reference document for use during the ICPC Regional contest. - Teams can quickly look up prepared solutions, algorithms, and implementation templates instead of writing everything from scratch. - Think of it as your team’s printed competitive-programming reference manual. - The codebook must be **25 pages or fewer**. Sample codebook: [KACTL](https://github.com/kth-competitive-programming/kactl) --- <!-- .slide: id="questions" --> _Questions_ ## Further Questions? - [Guide: aryanc403.com/blog/india-icpc-2026/](https://aryanc403.com/blog/india-icpc-2026/) - [Asia West website](https://icpcwestasia.netlify.app/) - [Advice by 2× ICPC World Finalist](https://youtu.be/0XJPWQSU6Iw) Mail regional contest directors for site-specific issues. Contact details are on official regional websites.