In preparation, club members have been busy practicing algorithmic problem-solving, debugging code and competitive strategies.
“We’ve been running mock contests every week and reviewing past problems,” senior co-captain Eric Xue said. “We’re aiming to end the season with a win.”
TJ IOI comes after an impressive second place finish at the 2025 Academies of Loudoun Informatics Tournament (ACL-IT) in March. Hosting over 100 participants and 30 teams from Northern Virginia, the ACL-IT challenged competitors with complex algorithmic problems designed to test their teamwork and coding skills. Xue also individually won the Blitz Cup, a single elimination tournament where representatives from each of the top eight teams compete in 1v1s to solve programming problems.
“We surpassed our expectations and managed to solve all 12 of the problems last time,” senior co-captain Aiden Feyerherm said. “The event was an excellent positive, and we hope the club will keep growing and attending these competitions in the future.”
In addition to tournament preparations, the club is also in the midst of selecting next year’s leadership team, as the entirety of the current board will be graduating this coming June. Responsibilities include hosting weeking practice contests and lectures, handling club management and logistics, taking the club to various contests and soliciting sponsorships.
“It’s bittersweet to see the year come to an end, but we’re excited to pass the torch to the next group of officers,” Xue said. “We’ve built a good foundation, and I’m confident the club will keep growing.”
