World Puzzle Championship

The World Puzzle Championship (commonly abbreviated as WPC) is an annual international puzzle competition run by the World Puzzle Federation. All the puzzles in the competition are pure-logic problems based on simple principles, designed to be playable regardless of language or culture.[1]

National teams are determined by local affiliates of the World Puzzle Federation. Of the 26 championships (team category) held thus far, 14 have been won by the United States, 7 by Germany, 3 by the Czech Republic, and 2 by Japan. The most successful individual contestant is Ulrich Voigt (Germany) with 11 titles since 2000.

The latest WPC was held in October 2019 in Germany.[2]

Origin

The World Puzzle Championship was the brainchild of Levi Summers, who wanted to create an event where puzzlers from different countries could compete on an even playing field.[3] Previously, the International Crossword Marathon was the major international competition for puzzle-solving, and Shortz had attended it every year, but because participants used their own language and crossword rules, it was not a very good basis for comparing raw puzzle-solving skills across cultures. Shortz created the WPC to overcome these flaws.[1] As described by Nick Baxter, co-director of the U.S. Puzzle Championship, the challenge of the competition is speed.[4]

The first WPC was held in New York City in 1992, and Shortz was the organizer and Helene Hovanec was the coordinator. Each WPC has been held at a different city since then.

Participants

Currently, 34 countries are official members of the World Puzzle Federation.[5] Individuals may also take part if their country is not already represented by a national team.[6][7] In the 2017 WPC, 169 contestants from 27 countries participated.[8] The United States has won the championship 14 times, followed by Germany with 7 championships. The Czech Republic has won three times and Japan has won twice. Ulrich Voigt of Germany has been the most successful individual contestant, winning the gold medal eleven times since 2000. Wei-Hwa Huang of the United States won four of the first eight championships in the 1990s.

Results summary
Host city
 Individual Team
Year City Country Gold Silver Bronze Gold Silver Bronze Ref.
1992New York City United States Canada David SamuelCanada Darren RigbyUnited States Daniel Johnson United States Argentina Poland[9]
1993Brno Czech Republic Czech Republic Robert BabilonUnited States Wei-Hwa HuangCzech Republic Pavel Kalhous Czech Republic United States Canada[10]
1994Cologne Germany United States Ron OsherCzech Republic Pavel KalhousCroatia Pero Galogaza Czech Republic United States Croatia[11]
1995Poiana Brasov Romania United States Wei-Hwa HuangHungary Gyorgy IstvanCzech Republic Pavel Kalhous United States Czech Republic Hungary[12]
1996Utrecht Netherlands Czech Republic Robert BabilonUnited States Zack ButlerUnited States Wei-Hwa Huang United States Czech Republic Turkey[13]
1997Koprivnica Croatia United States Wei-Hwa HuangUnited States Ron OsherCzech Republic Robert Babilon Czech Republic United States Hungary[14]
1998Istanbul Turkey United States Wei-Hwa HuangJapan Akira NakaiUnited States Zack Butler United States Japan Hungary[15]
1999Budapest Hungary United States Wei-Hwa HuangUnited States Zack ButlerNetherlands Niels Roest United States Netherlands Czech Republic[16]
2000Stamford United States Germany Ulrich VoigtUnited States Wei-Hwa HuangNetherlands Niels Roest United States Netherlands Germany[17]
2001Brno Czech Republic Germany Ulrich VoigtCzech Republic Robert BabilonUnited States Zack Butler United States Czech Republic Belgium[18]
2002Oulu Finland Netherlands Niels RoestGermany Roland VoigtGermany Ulrich Voigt Japan Germany United States[19]
2003Arnhem Netherlands Germany Ulrich VoigtUnited States Wei-Hwa HuangUnited States Roger Barkan Germany United States Netherlands[20]
2004Opatija Croatia Netherlands Niels RoestGermany Ulrich VoigtUnited States Roger Barkan United States Germany Hungary[21]
2005Eger Hungary Germany Ulrich VoigtUnited States Wei-Hwa HuangNetherlands Niels Roest Germany United States Japan[22]
2006Borovets Bulgaria Germany Ulrich VoigtUnited States Wei-Hwa HuangJapan Maho Yokota United States Germany Japan[23]
2007Rio de Janeiro Brazil Hungary Pal MadarassyUnited States Thomas SnyderGermany Ulrich Voigt United States Japan Belgium[24]
2008Minsk Belarus Germany Ulrich VoigtTurkey Mehmet Murat SevimUnited States Roger Barkan United States Japan Czech Republic[25]
2009Antalya Turkey Germany Ulrich VoigtSlovakia Peter HudákTurkey Mehmet Murat Sevim Germany United States Japan[26]
2010Paprotnia Poland Japan Taro ArimatsuGermany Ulrich VoigtJapan Hideaki Jo United States Japan Germany[27]
2011Eger Hungary United States Palmer MebaneGermany Ulrich VoigtUnited States Thomas Snyder United States Germany Japan[28]
2012Kraljevica Croatia Germany Ulrich VoigtUnited States Thomas SnyderUnited States Palmer Mebane Germany Japan United States[29]
2013Beijing China Germany Ulrich VoigtUnited States Palmer MebaneUnited States Thomas Snyder United States Germany Japan[30]
2014London United Kingdom Germany Ulrich VoigtUnited States Palmer MebaneGermany Florian Kirch Germany Japan United States[31]
2015Sofia Bulgaria Japan Ken EndoGermany Ulrich VoigtUnited States Palmer Mebane Germany Japan United States[32]
2016Senec Slovakia Germany Ulrich VoigtUnited States Palmer MebaneJapan Ken Endo Germany Japan United States
2017Bangalore India Japan Ken EndoGermany Ulrich VoigtJapan Kota Morinishi Japan United States Germany[33]
2018Prague Czech Republic United States Thomas SnyderGermany Ulrich VoigtJapan Ken Endo Germany United States Hungary[34]
2019Kirchheim Germany Germany Philipp WeißJapan Ken EndoUnited States Walker Anderson United States Germany Japan[35]
2020Shanghai China cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic [36]
2021Shanghai China
2022Kraków Poland Japan Ken EndoIndia Prasanna SeshadriUnited States Thomas Luo Japan United States Germany
2023Toronto Canada Upcoming competition

Age-restricted categories

Starting from 2013, titles have been awarded also for the best players in two age categories, Under 18 and Over 50 years of age.

Location
 Under 18 Over 50
Year City Country Gold Silver Bronze Gold Silver Bronze Ref.
2013Beijing China China Qiu YanzheSlovakia Jakub BahylSlovakia Zuzana HromcováItaly Stefano ForcolinUnited States Nick BaxterFinland Jouni Juhani Särkijärvi[30]
2014London United Kingdom China Qiu YanzheFrance Olivier GarçonnetTurkey Mehmet DurmuşItaly Stefano ForcolinCzech Republic Jiří HrdinaUnited States Nick Baxter[37]
2015Sofia Bulgaria China Qiu YanzheFrance Olivier GarçonnetSlovakia Pavol KollárUnited Kingdom David McNeillItaly Stefano ForcolinSerbia Zoran Tanasić[32]
2016Senec Slovakia China Qiu YanzheSlovakia Pavol KollárFrance Olivier GarçonnetJapan Taro ArimatsuItaly Stefano ForcolinHungary Miklós Mócsy
2017Bangalore India United States Walker AndersonSlovakia Pavol KollárSouth Korea Kang HyunmoJapan Taro ArimatsuUnited Kingdom David McNeillGermany Michael Smit[33]
2018Prague Czech Republic United States Walker AndersonChina Tantan DaiBulgaria Ivan GeorgievJapan Taro ArimatsuSerbia Cedomir MilanovicGermany Michael Smit
2019Kirchheim Germany United States Walker AndersonJapan Ryotaro ChibaHungary Péter GyimesiJapan Taro Arimatsu United Kingdom David McNeillSerbia Cedomir Milanovic
2020Shanghai China cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic [36]
2021Shanghai China
2022Kraków Poland India Nityant AgriwalSouth Korea Yoon GeonwooTurkey Ahmet Eren GozubenliJapan Taro ArimatsuBulgaria Deyan RazsadovSerbia Cedomir Milanovic

Classic puzzles used

Incomplete list, in alphabetical order:

See also

References
  1. Grossman, Lev (11 March 2013). "The Answer Men". Time. Archived from the original on March 1, 2013. Retrieved 4 March 2013.(registration required)
  2. "WSPC 2019 Main". wspc2019.de. Retrieved 2019-08-20.
  3. Harvey, Jay (Feb 26, 2013). "Will Shortz will deal with crosswords and other puzzles at Butler University April 12". IndyStar. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  4. Antonick, Gary (March 11, 2013). "A Poker Puzzle From the Logic Olympics". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  5. "WPF Members". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
  6. "WPF Members". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  7. Ratzlav-Katz, Nissan (3 November 2009). "First Israeli at World Puzzle Championship". Israel National News. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  8. Shortz, Will (October 23, 2017). "Japan Wins World Puzzle Championship, U.S.A. Takes Second". The New York Times.
  9. "The 1st World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  10. "The 2nd World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  11. "The 3rd World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  12. "The 4th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  13. "The 5th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  14. "The 6th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  15. "The 7th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  16. "The 8th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  17. "The 9th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  18. "The 10th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  19. "The 11th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  20. "The 12th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  21. "The 13th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  22. "The 14th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  23. "The 15th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  24. "The 16th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  25. "The 17th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  26. "The 18th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  27. "The 19th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  28. "The 20th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  29. "The 21st World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 20 March 2013.
  30. "The 22nd World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  31. "2014 WSC & WPC award winners". UK Puzzle Association. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  32. "The 24th World Puzzle Championship". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
  33. "WSPC 2017 - Logic Masters India". Logic Masters India. Retrieved 29 October 2017.
  34. "27th World Puzzle Championship" (PDF). World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  35. "WSPC 2019 WPC - Results". World Sudoku & Puzzle Championship 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  36. "World Puzzle Championships". World Puzzle Federation. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  37. "2014 WSC & WPC award winners". UK Puzzle Association. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
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