Rohan Rao | |
---|---|
Born | Mumbai, India |
Nationality | India |
Years active | 2007-present |
Rohan Rao, who goes by the name vopani, [1] [2] is an Indian sudoku and puzzle solver, widely considered as the best sudoku solver of India. [3] He is the reigning Indian Sudoku Champion and Times of India Sudoku Champion. Rao has won 18 national championships, an all-time record, and has been one of the best Indians at the World Sudoku Championship (WSC), World Puzzle Championship (WPC) and Asian Sudoku Championship (ASC). He won the Indian Sudoku Championship nine times, in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] the Indian Puzzle Championship five times, in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2017, [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] and the Times National Sudoku Championship four times, in 2012, 2015, 2016, 2019. [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] [24] [25] [26]
Rao was ranked 3rd in ASC 2021, 23rd in WSC 2019 and 39th in WPC 2019. He stood 8th in the World Sudoku Championship 2012 to become the first Indian to be ranked in the top-10 in the World in Sudoku. He stood 3rd at the Asian Sudoku Championship 2018 [27] to become the first Indian to finish on the podium of an international WPF Sudoku Championship. He finished 3rd again at ASC 2019 [28] and improved his performance with a 2nd-place finish at ASC 2020. [29]
He was the director of the World Sudoku Championship 2017 and core organizer of World Sudoku and Puzzle Championship 2017 held in October, 2017 in Bengaluru, India. [30] As part of his puzzling career, Rao has authored and organized various puzzle and sudoku championships, events and workshops across India and the world. [31]
Rao won his first Indian Sudoku Championship title in 2010, beating veteran solvers Ritesh Gupta (three-time and defending champion), Rishi Puri and Gaurav Korde in the finals to become the youngest ever national champion at the age of 19 years, 9 days. Since then he has won eight more times, making him the most successful player in the tournament.
He finished on the podium for 12 consecutive years (2010-2021). No other player has finished on the podium for more than 4 consecutive years.
Rao won his first Indian Puzzle Championship title in 2010, pipping veteran solver Rajesh Kumar to become the youngest ever national champion at the age of 19 years, 240 days. Since then he has won four more times, matching Kumar's tally of 5 titles.
The Asian Sudoku Championship was first held in 2018 where Rao stood third. He finished on the podium for four consecutive years with his 3rd-place in 2019, 2nd-place in 2020 and 3rd-place in 2021.
18 Gold, 7 Silver, 7 Bronze
Ranks in the Indian Sudoku Championship, Indian Puzzle Championship, and Times Sudoku Championship.
Year | National Championships | ||
---|---|---|---|
ISC | IPC | TSC | |
2021 | 1st | 2nd | |
2020 | 1st | 3rd | |
2019 | 1st | 3rd | 1st |
2018 | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
2017 | 1st | 1st | |
2016 | 1st | 2nd | 1st |
2015 | 3rd | 1st | 1st |
2014 | 2nd | 2nd | 3rd |
2013 | 2nd | 4th | 3rd |
2012 | 1st | 1st | 1st |
2011 | 1st | 1st | |
2010 | 1st | 1st | |
2009 | 4th | 2nd | |
2008 | 11th | 3rd | |
4 ASC Appearances
Ranks in the Asian Sudoku Championship (ASC)
Year | Asian Championships |
---|---|
ASC | |
2021 | 3rd |
2020 | 2nd |
2019 | 3rd |
2018 | 3rd |
11 WSC Appearances, 11 WPC Appearances
Ranks in the World Sudoku Championship (WSC), World Puzzle Championship (WPC)
Year | World Championships | |
---|---|---|
WSC | WPC | |
2019 | 23rd | 39th |
2018 | 17th | 44th |
2017 | Director | Organizer |
2016 | 18th | 28th |
2015 | 14th | 42nd |
2014 | 14th | 36th |
2013 | 16th | 45th |
2012 | 8th | 38th |
2011 | 12th | 34th |
2010 | 15th | 41st |
2009 | 25th | |
2008 | 68th | |
A puzzle is a game, problem, or toy that tests a person's ingenuity or knowledge. In a puzzle, the solver is expected to put pieces together in a logical way, in order to arrive at the correct or fun solution of the puzzle. There are different genres of puzzles, such as crossword puzzles, word-search puzzles, number puzzles, relational puzzles, and logic puzzles. The academic study of puzzles is called enigmatology.
Pankaj Arjan Advani is an Indian billiards and former professional snooker player. He is a 25-time International Billiards and Snooker Federation (IBSF) world champion. He has won 17 billiards world titles, the IBSF World Billiards Championship on 16 occasions and the World Team Billiards Championship once. In snooker, he won the IBSF World Snooker Championship three times, IBSF World six-red championship twice and the IBSF World Team Cup and IBSF World Team Championship one time each. He has the record number of IBSF world championships. He became a snooker professional in 2012/2013.
Sudoku is a logic-based, combinatorial number-placement puzzle. In classic Sudoku, the objective is to fill a 9 × 9 grid with digits so that each column, each row, and each of the nine 3 × 3 subgrids that compose the grid contain all of the digits from 1 to 9. The puzzle setter provides a partially completed grid, which for a well-posed puzzle has a single solution.
The World Puzzle Championship 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.
Ariadne's thread, named for the legend of Ariadne, is solving a problem by multiple means—such as a physical maze, a logic puzzle, or an ethical dilemma—through an exhaustive application of logic to all available routes. It is the particular method used that is able to follow completely through to trace steps or take point by point a series of found truths in a contingent, ordered search that reaches an end position. This process can take the form of a mental record, a physical marking, or even a philosophical debate; it is the process itself that assumes the name.
The University of Michigan Solar Car Team is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. It is the most successful solar car team in North America, having won the North American Solar Challenge (NASC) nine times. The team has also placed third in the World Solar Challenge (WSC) six times, and got second place in 2017. Six of its former vehicles are on display in museums in the United States, including the Henry Ford Museum, the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, and the Boston Museum of Science.
Wei-Hwa Huang is an American puzzler, member of the US Team for the World Puzzle Championship, and game designer.
The World Sudoku Championship (WSC) is an annual international puzzle competition organised by a member of the World Puzzle Federation. The first event was held in Lucca in 2006. National teams are determined by local affiliates of the World Puzzle Federation. The competition typically consists of 100 or more puzzles solved by all competitors over multiple timed rounds, including classic sudoku, variations and other puzzle types, normally followed by a playoff for the top qualifiers to determine a champion. Examples of rounds include the Relay round, where an answer from one puzzle contributes digits to the start of the next sudoku, and the "World Record" round, in which solvers competed to set a Guinness World Record for fastest sudoku solution.
Mangte Chungneijang Mary Kom is an Indian amateur boxer, politician, and former Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha. She is the only woman to win the World Amateur Boxing Championship six times, the only female boxer to have won a medal in each one of the first seven World Championships, and the only boxer to win eight World Championship medals. Nicknamed Magnificent Mary, she was the only Indian female boxer to have qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics, where she competed in the flyweight (51 kg) category and won a bronze medal. She had also been ranked as the world's No. 1 female light-flyweight by the International Boxing Association (amateur) (AIBA). She became the first Indian female boxer to win a gold medal in the Asian Games in 2014 at Incheon, South Korea and is the first Indian female boxer to win gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. She is also the only boxer to become Asian Amateur Boxing Champion for a record six times. Mary Kom won the 51kg gold in President's Cup in Indonesia.
Shaheer Nawaz Sheikh is an Indian actor and model who mainly works in Hindi television. In 2009, he made his acting debut with the television show Kya Mast Hai Life playing Veer Mehra and then appeared as Anant Bajpai in Navya..Naye Dhadkan Naye Sawaal. In 2013, he got his breakthrough with the role of Arjuna in Mahabharat for which he received widespread acclaim.
Feliks Aleksanders Zemdegs , ; born 20 December 1995) is an Australian Rubik's Cube speedsolver. He is the only speedcuber ever to win the World Cube Association World Championship twice, winning in 2013 and 2015, and is widely considered the most successful and greatest speedcuber of all time. He has set more than 350 records across various speedcubing events: 121 world records, 211 continental records, and 6 national records.
Pusarla Venkata Sindhu is an Indian badminton player. Considered one of India's most successful sportspersons, Sindhu has won medals at various tournaments such as the Olympics and on the BWF circuit, including a gold at the 2019 World Championships. She is the first and only Indian to become the badminton world champion and only the second individual athlete from India to win two consecutive medals at the Olympic Games. She rose to a career-high world ranking of no. 2 in April 2017.
Thomas Snyder is an American puzzle creator and world-champion sudoku and logic puzzle solver. He is the first person to win both the World Sudoku Championship and the World Puzzle Championship. Snyder writes a puzzle blog as Dr. Sudoku.
Aham Sharma is an Indian actor from Salimpur, Bihar, India. Best known for his work in Indian television, he has also featured in several Bollywood films including 1962 My Country Land which premiered at Marche du Film of the 69th Cannes Film Festival.
Nihal Sarin is an Indian chess player and chess prodigy. He achieved the title of Grandmaster at age 14. In 2018, he passed the Elo rating of 2600 at 14 years old, which at the time made him the third youngest player in history to do so.
Akhil Rabindra is an Indian racing driver and a graduate from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. For the 2019 Season, Akhil Rabindra is selected as the Aston Martin Racing Academy Driver and will be racing in the GT4 European Series and will drive an Aston Martin Vantage GT4 for PROsport Performance and Rabindra teamed up with 23-year-old Swiss racer Florian Thoma. The 2019 GT4 European Series began at Autodromo Nazionale Monza Italy on 12–14 April where Akhil finished 8th and 7th in 2 races securing 10 points. Akhil with his team PROsport Performance achieved the first podium for the New Aston Martin Vantage GT4 by finishing 2nd in the 2019 24H GT Series European held at Mugello Circuit Italy on 29 to 30 March 2019, Won in the 2019 24H GT Series European at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps Belgium on 19 to 20 April 2nd in the Race-1 at the GT4 European Series held at Brands Hatch UK on 4 to 5 May 2019 and 3rd in the GT4 class at 2019 24H GT Series European held at Brno Circuit Czech Republic on 24 to 25 May.
The Indian Sudoku Championship is an annual national contest held in India to crown the Indian Sudoku Champion and to select the national team for the Asian Sudoku Championship and World Sudoku Championship. It usually consists of multiple rounds of solving various classic sudoku and its variants, and the scores of players are aggregated for the final rankings. It is conducted by Logic Masters India, which is the Indian affiliate of the World Puzzle Federation.
Rishi Puri, a two-time Indian National Sudoku Champion. He was considered as one of the top three sudoku solvers from India along with Rohan Rao and Prasanna Seshadri at the national championships and the World Sudoku Championships. Rishi won the Indian Sudoku Championships in 2014 and 2015. He also won the Times Sudoku Championship in 2013.
The Asian Sudoku Championship (ASC) is an annual international sudoku competition organised by a member of the World Puzzle Federation (WPF). The first official event was held in Jeju Island, South Korea in 2018 and the latest event was held in Hyderabad, India in 2020. National teams are determined by local affiliates of the WPF. The competition typically consists of several classic sudokus and variations to be solved by all competitors over multiple timed rounds.
Cracking the Cryptic (CTC) is a YouTube channel dedicated to paper-and-pencil puzzles: primarily sudoku, but also cryptic crosswords and other types of number-placement, pencil, and word puzzles. They occasionally stream puzzle games on YouTube.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link){{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link)