Benelux Algorithm Programming Contest 2005 sponsored by Sogeti

The name of the BAPC

Many will be surprised to hear about the Benelux Algorithm Programming Contest. The name is not known by many, though the contest itself is. This is due to the fact that the name has been changed only a few weeks ago (at the time of this writing). The organisers of the NKP 2005 (Nederlands Kampioenschap Programmeren) thought that the 15th anniversary of the event required something extra and they decided to try and ask the universities from Belgium and Luxemburg to send teams.

Of course, a contest held for all of the Benelux can't be called the 'Dutch Championship'. So the organisers agreed to give the contest a new name. Another reason to change the name was the image of the contests. They were called 'Programming Contest', which radiates a dull nerd-image; even though they're quite the opposite of nerdy, a programming contest is a challenging and enjoyable contest for anyone who likes solving original problems.

The name 'Benelux Algorithm Programming Contest' was chosen because of the following reasons:

All of the Benelux should participate, hence the 'Benelux';
The image radiated by the name is adjusted by adding the 'Algorithm' aspect;
The contest is still solved by programming, so 'Programming' ought to be kept;
It's still a contest and it should still be promoted as such, hence the 'Contest';
Last but not least: of several combinations BAPC sounds best. It can be pronounced as [bæpsi] or (in Dutch) as [bàps], both reminding several members of the organisation of women.