Tournament Updates

January 7, 2026

Hello Coaches!

Thank you for registering for the Official California Invitational! We are excited to host your teams at our tournament.

General Tournament Information

Timeline: We’ve adjusted the start and end dates: tests will open on January 20 at 6 AM PST and close on January 31 at 11:59 PM PST. The tournament timeline can be found linked here. Any changes to the timeline will be emailed to coaches.

Assigning Students: We have just assigned team numbers. Coaches can now head to the head coach dashboard and click on "Student/Team/Event Assignment" to input their student roster, assign students to teams, and assign students to events. This function will lock at 5:59 AM PST on Tuesday, January 20 (right before the tournament starts). 

Payment: Payment is due on January 19, 2026. Please visit this link to check your school’s payment status. If you need an invoice, please log into the Scilympiad page and from the Head Coach dashboard, click on pay membership dues, then click on pay be check/view invoice. The W-9 can also be found on our web page, linked here. Payment can be done via PayPal or by check, and the information for both can be found on the web page. If we do not receive payment by January 19, we will remove team numbers, which would prevent your team from competing.

State Registration: As per Science Olympiad's membership policy, all competing teams must be registered with their State Organization prior to the start of the tournament.

Event Modifications

Here is the link to the event modifications document. Please note that this document is subject to change, though we will send an email should any significant revisions occur from this point forward. We’ve included some of the key information below, but please ensure that your students have read through this document before their events.

Test Events: We require that all note sheets and binders be printed out, with the exception of Astronomy C. For Entomology C and Rocks and Minerals C, if students choose to use a field guide and/or a copy of the reference lists, they must be physical copies.

Build Events: All build events will be run via video submission to a Google Form and detailed instructions can be found on the event modifications document. Build events will also be run as trial events, meaning that students will receive medals but their placement will not affect the team’s overall score.

Hybrid Events: For this tournament, all hybrid events will be run in a test-only format. Events that normally include labs will be run as dry labs or without a hands-on component, and events with build portions will be run as written tests only. 

The materials for Experimental Design B/C and Write it Do it B, the drop height for Bungee Drop C, and any other events requiring pre-released materials will be sent out about a week before the tournament begins. 

Please reach out if you have any questions. Thank you!

Best,
Kelly Au and Nathan Jew
Official California Invitational Tournament Directors

November 24, 2025

Hello Coaches!

We’re excited to announce the Official California Invitational hosted by California Science Olympiad! Events will be run entirely by Science Olympiad alumni from SoCal and NorCal Science Olympiad, who will also serve as Event Writers and Event Supervisors for this year’s Regional and State Tournaments.

Tournament Information

The tournament will take place from January 20, 2026 to January 30, 2026 and is for both Divisions B and C. We will be running it in the satellite format. All build events will be run as trial events, and a comprehensive list of event modifications will be released as we near the start date.

Registration Details

Registration is now open and will close on January 19, 2026! Registration is $80 per team. There is no limit to the number of teams per division, and schools can register as many teams as they want. Note that all teams must be registered with their State Organization as per National Science Olympiad rules.

Any inquiries can be sent to our email at cainvite@socalscioly.org.

We look forward to having you compete at our tournament!

Best,
Kelly Au and Nathan Jew
Official California Invitational Tournament Directors