Battersea Autumn 2024

A blistering 5.90 final average by James Alonso in the 3x3x3 Cube set the benchmark at Battersea Autumn 2024, but the true spirit of the weekend reached far beyond the winning numbers. Held across September 28 and September 29, the cubing competition brought together 141 competitors at Emanuel School in London, Greater London, United Kingdom. Between tense rounds and lightning-fast solves, participants shared techniques, traded scramble insights, and supported one another through seven distinct events spanning 16 total rounds.

The atmosphere across the venue highlighted the tight-knit nature of modern speedcubing. While the main stage featured intense battles, the practice tables and side areas served as spaces for competitors to test their skills on different mechanisms. Across the two days of action in 2024, the hall buzzed with activity as solvers analyzed rotations, discussed algorithms, and caught up between scheduled heats in a classic speed cubing environment.

Alonso stood out as the only multi-event champion of the tournament. Alongside his headline performance in the classic Rubik's Cube, he claimed top honors in the 4x4x4 Cube with a winning average of 33.38 and a single solve of 30.49. That victory came down to fractions of a second, just ahead of Alan Tan, who took second place with a 33.46 average, while Glib Vedmid secured third place with 33.71 in a tight contest.

Tan enjoyed an exceptional tournament across the board, capturing the 2x2x2 Cube title with a 1.35 winning average after posting a best single of 0.87. Alonso followed closely behind in second place with a 1.57 average, and Anqi Yu completed the podium with 1.98. Tan also made his mark in the big cubes, earning second place in the 5x5x5 Cube with a 1:03.54 average, trailing only champion Kerem Eroglu, who posted a winning average of 1:02.55 and a single of 56.09.

Away from the main stage, numerous competitors produced massive personal milestones throughout this WCA competition. Khongelani Masumbe cut deep into previous marks, dropping their Skewb personal best by 59.8 percent down to 13.32 and slicing their 4x4x4 Cube best by 53.9 percent to 1:08.69, while also managing a 4.18 in the 2x2x2 Cube. Rafe Murray improved their Skewb personal best by 45.7 percent to 5.64, logged a 7.78 Pyraminx best, and recorded a first ever attempt in the 5x5x5 Cube with 2:24.81. Misha Prosyankin made a first ever attempt at the 4x4x4 Cube with 59.03, alongside a 40 percent improvement in the 2x2x2 Cube to 2.41.

The progress continued across a variety of disciplines as solvers stepped up to tackle fresh challenges. Alex Rivera-Montanes knocked 38.6 percent off their 5x5x5 Cube mark with a 1:15.61, recorded a first ever attempt at Square-1 with 28.88, and achieved a best finish of 13th in the 4x4x4 Cube. Shicheng Pang took on 2x2x2 Cube for the first time with 2.41, tackled 4x4x4 Cube for the first time with 37.94, and finished 5th in the 3x3x3 Cube with an 8.06 personal best that was 38.5 percent faster than their prior mark. Alex Smith registered a first ever attempt at Skewb with 5.83, a first ever attempt at 4x4x4 Cube with 52.41, and an 18.86 personal best in Square-1. Vinay Keshav delivered a 33.3 percent improvement in Skewb to 13.02 and recorded a first ever attempt in 5x5x5 Cube at 3:11.74, while Kiaan Khera took on six events, including first ever attempts in Pyraminx at 10.22, Skewb at 10.54, and Square-1 at 51.64.

The side events brought their own distinct excitement to the schedule. Ariel Benchetrit dominated the Skewb event, posting a 2.35 winning average to lead Tom Nugent and Jaime Calzado Gomez. In the Pyraminx, Raphael Niman secured the victory with a 3.32 average, edging out Isaac Corker and Nathan Olano. Corker then took center stage in the Square-1 event, claiming first place with a 7.48 average over Fengyuan Kelvin Lou and Dorian Chan.

When the final round concluded, the official 3x3 results confirmed Alonso at the summit with his 5.90 average, joined on the podium by Tan in second with 8.38 and Ainesh Sevellaraja in third with 8.66. Across every bracket and puzzle size, Battersea Autumn 2024 proved to be a vibrant gathering of talent, where personal breakthroughs and friendly rivalries shared the spotlight equally from start to finish.