Sometimes, a submission history can raise intriguing questions. In this case, the timeline of attempts feels a little unusual.

00:05:33  Wrong answer on pretest 2 [pretests] → 295571776 (Problem B)
00:08:01  Wrong answer on pretest 1 [pretests] → 295574417 (Problem C)
00:09:08  Accepted [main tests] → 295575503 (Problem A)
00:09:54  Wrong answer on pretest 2 [pretests] → 295576288 (Problem B)
00:11:30  Accepted [main tests] → 295578002 (Problem C)
00:16:45  Wrong answer on pretest 2 [pretests] → 295582833 (Problem B)
00:20:27  Wrong answer on pretest 2 [pretests] → 295585707 (Problem B)
00:24:16  Wrong answer on pretest 1 [pretests] → 295588491 (Problem F)
00:26:56  Accepted [main tests] → 295590381 (Problem B)
00:38:47  Accepted [main tests] → 295598220 (Problem F)
00:47:02  Accepted [main tests] → 295602948 (Problem E)
01:10:49  Wrong answer on pretest 1 [pretests] → 295614463 (Problem D)
01:14:29  Wrong answer on pretest 1 [pretests] → 295615990 (Problem D)
01:17:47  Wrong answer on pretest 2 [pretests] → 295617321 (Problem D)

The participant solved challenging problems like C, E, and F quite quickly, with only a few wrong tries. Yet, they struggled with Problem B, a simpler question, needing five submissions before cracking it. On top of that, there was a lot of jumping between problems—failing at B, solving C almost effortlessly, then returning to B with continued difficulty.

That said, congratulations are definitely in order, he finished second overall! A great result, and it’s always interesting to see how different approaches play out in the heat of competition.