Altavista Big Open 2024

Twenty-seven competitors gathered across March 23 and March 24 in Montevideo, Uruguay, bringing energy, focus, and mutual encouragement to Grupo Altavista. The two-day gathering offered a packed program of 13 rounds across 9 distinct events, giving participants ample time to share setups, compare solving techniques, and cheer on peers between scheduled heats. The gathering highlighted how a tight-knit cubing competition fosters lasting friendships alongside intense competitive focus, with solvers spending their downtime trading tips across various puzzle disciplines in a shared pursuit of personal excellence.

The Altavista Big Open 2024 program featured an extensive slate of large twisty puzzles alongside classic sprint challenges. Solvers stepped up for big cube heats ranging from the four-layered puzzle all the way through the grueling seven-layered challenge. Across these extended formats, the atmosphere remained supportive as participants judged rounds for one another, timed complex solves, and discussed layer-by-layer methods during breaks between rounds in the 2024 Montevideo speed cubing calendar.

Agustín Diano delivered a remarkable series of performances across the weekend, claiming first place in four separate disciplines. In the 5x5x5 Cube, Diano secured the top spot with a winning average of 1:08.57 and a best single of 56.55, leading fellow Uruguayan podium finishers Víctor Gálvez at 1:15.09 and Nicolas Aguirre at 1:18.36. Diano extended that control to the 6x6x6 Cube, taking victory with a 2:09.58 average ahead of Gálvez at 2:16.84 and Aguirre at 2:57.15, before closing out the 7x7x7 Cube with a 3:06.42 winning average over Aguirre and Sebastiano Benato.

The traditional 3x3x3 Cube event drew a tournament-high 25 competitors across two rounds of play, capturing the full attention of the venue. The final round produced sharp speedcubing sequences, where Diano captured victory with an 8.85 winning average and a single of 6.42. Brian Hambeck earned second place with a 9.84 average, while Irene Pinto rounded out the podium at 10.46. These 3x3 results capped a weekend of high-level Rubik's Cube solving that kept everyone engaged at the timing tables.

Sprint events and specialty puzzles added further variety to Altavista Big Open 2024. In the 4x4x4 Cube, Víctor Gálvez edged Diano by two hundredths of a second, posting a 38.44 winning average against Diano's 38.46, with Aguirre in third at 43.00. Gálvez also claimed the top spot in the 2x2x2 Cube with a 3.15 average, finishing ahead of Santiago Cabral at 3.85 and Mateo Blois Escobar at 3.90. In Pyraminx, Sebastiano Benato won with a 2.65 average, while Mateo de León prevailed in Clock with a 5.07 average, and Brian Hambeck took Megaminx honors averaging 47.27.

Away from the top steps of the podium, numerous competitors delivered massive personal milestones that defined the character of the weekend. Mauricio Calvelo took on 7 events, securing a 4th-place result in Megaminx while posting his first ever attempt at 5x5x5 Cube with a 1:44.42, a first attempt at Pyraminx with a 13.21, and slashing his 2x2x2 Cube personal best to 3.12, which was 56.3 percent faster than his prior mark. Juan Pablo Chans took on 5 events, recording a first ever attempt in 2x2x2 Cube at 5.83 and Megaminx at 3:44.62, alongside a Clock personal best of 13.09 that improved by 19.2 percent. Martín Santamaría Ruiz logged his first 4x4x4 Cube attempt at 2:02.06 and improved his Pyraminx best by 47 percent down to 19.08. Ariana Cardoso posted a first 5x5x5 Cube attempt of 1:31.94, finishing 6th, while improving her 4x4x4 Cube mark by 13.4 percent to 46.80.

The progress continued across the roster as Alan Arballo achieved a 31.4 percent improvement on 2x2x2 Cube with a 3.38 personal best and improved his 3x3x3 Cube best by 12.6 percent to 17.59. Agustín Márquez entered 5 events, earning 5th place in Pyraminx with a personal best of 5.14, a 16 percent improvement, while also logging a first ever attempt at Megaminx with a 3:01.58. Lucas Barrientos recorded his first attempt in 2x2x2 Cube at 21.79 and dropped his 3x3x3 Cube best by 14.1 percent to 19.27. Sofía Rojo took on three events, logging a first ever attempt at 5x5x5 Cube with a 3:02.94 and improving her 4x4x4 Cube time by 19.9 percent to 1:32.72.

First-time competitors also made their presence felt on the official stage during Altavista Big Open 2024. Franco Briozzo took part in their first WCA competition, competing in three separate events and logging official marks of 14.94 in Pyraminx, 31.85 in the 3x3x3 Cube, and 10.69 in the 2x2x2 Cube. Bruno Ezequiel Romero Venosa debuted with a 6.01 single in the 2x2x2 Cube to place 14th, while Joaquín Alvez posted a 31.16 in his first official 3x3x3 Cube appearance.

Every podium position across all nine events went to competitors representing the host nation of Uruguay, reflecting strong depth across standard and large cube disciplines. Between rounds, participants lingered to analyze scrambles, share puzzle hardware, and support new solvers experiencing the timer for the very first time. As the final tables were packed away at Grupo Altavista, Altavista Big Open 2024 concluded having demonstrated the strength of Montevideo's solving community and setting a warm, collaborative tone for the season ahead.