7-Connected Graphs are 4-Ordered

Abstract

A graph $G$ is $k$-ordered if for any distinct vertices $v_1, v_2, \ldots, v_k \in V(G)$, it has a cycle through $v_1, v_2, \ldots, v_k$ in order. Let $f(k)$ denote the minimum integer so that every $f(k)$-connected graph is $k$-ordered. The first non-trivial case of determining $f(k)$ is when $k=4$, where the previously best known bounds are $7 \leq f(4) \leq 40$. We prove that in fact $f(4)=7$.