The 10th Philippine Sudoku Super Challenge is On

The search for the next Filipino sudoku champion is on.

SM Supermalls and the Mathematics Trainers Guild-Philippines (MTG) have launched the 10th Philippine Sudoku Super Challenge (PSSC) and 2015 DepEd-MTG-SM-SHARP Math Trail and Problem Solving Competitions Northern Luzon Inter-Regional Finals.

SM Supermalls’ Millie Dizon, vice president for marketing and communications, and Dr. Simon Chua, MTG president, signed a memorandum of agreement on April 15 as partners in conducting the two contests.

Witnessing the signing were vice president Lucero Ong of Collins International Trading and Myrna Agtarap of MTG.

“We’ve been supporting Sudoku contests for almost ten years,” said Dizon. “We started out by offering certain venues. Now it’s bigger as we have so many venues. We are very honored.”

She said a mall is no longer a place for enjoyment but as a place for excellence with the conduct of the sudoku contest.

“It’s a place that breeds excellence through the math-inclined kids who are geniuses,” Dizon said.

She said under the agreement, the 10th PSSC regional eliminations will be held simultaneously on October 17 in SM Supermalls in Cagayan de Oro, Dasmarinas (Cavite), Sta. Rosa (Laguna), Baguio, Cebu, Pampanga, Iloilo, Lucena, Baliwag, Bacolod, Lipa (Batangas), Rosales (Pangasinan), Tarlac, Davao, Naga, Gen. Santos, Olongapo and Marikina, while the national finals will be on January 30, 2016 at SM City North EDSA.

The 2015 DepEd-MTG-SM-SHARP Math Trail and Problem Solving Competitions Northern Luzon Inter-Regional Finals for Regions 1, 2 and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) will be on November 14 at SM Baguio.

Dr. Chua thanked SM Supermalls for its supporting to the contests.

”We are very grateful to SM Supermalls for supporting us since the sudoku contest started in 2006,” he said.

Philippines has produced international sudoku contest winners in the past few years through the Philippine Sudoku Super Challenge.

Sarah Jane Cua, a student at Ateneo de Manila University, won as champion in the 2008 and 2010 BRAND’s Sudoku Challenge Asia Pacific Open in Singapore.

John Robert Valcos and Cua emerged as champion and first runner-up, respectively, in the 3rd BRAND’s Sudoku Thailand International Open 2009 Princess Somsawali Cup in Bangkok.

Cua also won third place in the age 18 and under category in the 2012 Beijing International Sudoku Tournament.