Big and Blind Samobor 2024

Inside the halls of Centar za mlade Bunker, the focused silence of memory challenges alternated with the rapid click of plastic layers turning at maximum speed. Across two demanding days, 26 competitors gathered in Samobor, Croatia for Big and Blind Samobor 2024 from May 25 to May 26, 2024. The gathering served as a specialized test of endurance and spatial memory, bringing together specialists in large puzzles and blindfolded solving alongside standard disciplines.

The most breathtaking moment of the entire cubing competition came at the conclusion of the 7x7x7 Cube final. Croatia's David Vujasić and Italy's Vincenzo Maria Gammino pushed each other to the absolute limit across five intense solves. When the times settled, Vujasić secured first place with an average of 2:50.63, edging Gammino's 2:50.89 by a razor-thin margin of twenty-six hundredths of a second. Germany's Serafim Weiß rounded out the podium in third place with a 3:06.67 average, marking one of the tightest large-cube conclusions seen all season.

David Vujasić built on that thrilling victory by capturing two additional titles across the weekend's large-cube schedule. In the 5x5x5 Cube, which drew the largest field of the meet with 23 competitors over two rounds, Vujasić took the gold with an average of 1:04.84, ahead of Slovenia's Oskar Vidiček at 1:07.08 and Weiß at 1:11.33. Vujasić completed his sweep of the big puzzles in the 6x6x6 Cube, winning with a 1:59.16 average, while Marcel Ručigaj of Slovenia finished second in 2:03.64 and Vidiček took third in 2:09.68.

The blindfolded categories became a showcase of extraordinary mental stamina, led by Croatia's Jakov Srečković. In the 3x3x3 Blindfolded discipline, Srečković delivered an exceptional performance, capturing the title with a single time of 20.96 seconds while also logging a Croatian national record average of 24.08 seconds during the rounds. Slovenia's Marcel Ručigaj finished second with 1:03.24, and Dušan Zakelšek claimed third in 2:05.06. Srečković proved equally dominant in the 4x4x4 Blindfolded event, winning with a best single of 4:09.28.

Srečković extended his winning run further by securing first place in 3x3x3 Multi-Blind, successfully resolving 37 out of 41 puzzles within a time of 59:44. Ručigaj followed in second place with 14 out of 17 solved in 52:31, and Matej Bolta placed third with 12 out of 17 in 52:46. Srečković also demonstrated his versatility by claiming victory in the Clock event, posting a winning average of 4.82 seconds. In the strategy-heavy 3x3x3 Fewest Moves contest, Slovenia's Dušan Zakelšek earned top honors with a 30.33 mean, outperforming Balázs Polyák of Hungary at 33.67 and Matic Omulec of Slovenia at 34.00.

Beyond the title contests, Big and Blind Samobor 2024 highlighted several remarkable personal milestones away from the spotlight. Lucijan Cvijetović took on five separate events, earning a 22.5 percent personal best in Clock with a 20.55 single compared to his previous 26.53, while also logging his first ever attempt at 3x3x3 Fewest Moves with a mark of 42. Ivan Erdelez delivered an impressive 17.5 percent reduction on his Clock benchmark, bringing his personal best down from 21.84 to 18.02. Barbara Kralj achieved a personal best of 40 in 3x3x3 Fewest Moves, cutting 13 percent off her previous 46, while recording her first ever attempt at Clock with a 9.14 result and posting a 1:29.49 personal best in 5x5x5 Cube.

Other competitors similarly embraced the opportunity to tackle fresh challenges at the WCA competition. Marin Grgić took on five disciplines during the weekend, achieving a personal best of 11.83 in Clock, which was 8.8 percent faster than his prior best of 12.97, and securing a fifth-place finish in 3x3x3 Multi-Blind. Luka Milotić registered for three events, logging his first ever attempt at Clock with a 17.79 single alongside his first ever attempt at the 5x5x5 Cube in 4:11.70. Meanwhile, Luka Hunjak stepped up for his first ever attempt at the 5x5x5 Cube, navigating the complex layers to post an opening mark of 4:35.75.

The overall medal standings highlighted strong regional depth across the nine disciplines, with Slovenian competitors taking 15 podium places, followed by Croatian cubers with 11, Hungary and Germany with two each, and Italy with one. With 13 rounds completed across two intense days, the gathering showcased the rich diversity of modern speedcubing, offering fans classic Rubik's Cube mechanics, tactical move-count challenges, and marathon memory feats. For all involved, Big and Blind Samobor 2024 delivered an unforgettable weekend of high-level speed cubing.

As the equipment was packed away at Centar za mlade Bunker, participants reflected on a meet marked by razor-thin margins and personal breakthroughs. Whether reviewing tactical approaches to 3x3 results or looking back at the tense 7x7x7 Cube final decided by fractions of a second, the competition demonstrated the sheer precision required at this level. The athletes now look ahead to applying their hard-earned progress in the next chapter of tournament action.

Ukupno 26 natjecatelja okupilo se u prostoru Centra za mlade Bunker kako bi odmjerilo snage kroz 13 rundi u devet različitih disciplina. Dvodnevno natjecanje održano od 25. do 26. svibnja donijelo je pregršt uzbuđenja i dokazalo koliko brzo napreduju mladi natjecatelji u regiji. Grad Samobor, Croatia bio je savršena kulisa za ovaj speedcubing susret koji je stavio naglasak na veće slagalice i iznimno zahtjevne discipline naslijepo. Publika i natjecatelji pratili su napete rasplete u kojima su stotinke i precizna memorizacija odlučivale o raspodjeli medalja.

Bilo je to izdanje poznato kao Big and Blind Samobor 2024, natjecanje koje je privuklo vrsne natjecatelje iz više europskih zemalja. Među njima su dominirali domaći i slovenski predstavnici, a viđeni su nastupi i natjecatelja iz Mađarske, Njemačke i Italije. Domaći predstavnici istaknuli su se u samom vrhu, pokazujući kako se predan rad i redoviti treninzi s Rubikova kocka varijantama isplate na velikoj sceni. Organizacija u Bunkeru omogućila je optimalne uvjete za postizanje vrhunskih rezultata.

Glavna zvijezda velikih kocki bio je David Vujasić, koji je demonstrirao vrhunsku formu i nevjerojatnu brzinu rješavanja. U disciplini 5x5x5 Cube slavio je s prosjekom 1:04.84 i najboljim pojedinačnim slaganjem od 1:01.85, ispred drugoplasiranog Oskara Vidičeka i trećeplasiranog Serafima Weißa. David Vujasić nastavio je pobjednički niz i na 6x6x6 Cube, gdje je uzeo zlato s prosjekom 1:59.16, ostavivši iza sebe Marcela Ručigaja i Oskara Vidičeka. Na 7x7x7 Cube također je bio najbolji s prosjekom 2:50.63, pobijedivši u tijesnoj završnici Vincenza Mariju Gammina koji je imao prosjek 2:50.89.

Na polju slaganja bez gledanja apsolutnu dominaciju pokazao je Jakov Srečković, postavivši pritom i zapažene rezultate. U disciplini 3x3x3 Blindfolded pobijedio je s pojedinačnim vremenom 20.96, a tijekom natjecanja postavio je i nacionalni rekord s prosjekom 24.08 te pojedinačnim rezultatom 22.11. Iza njega su na postolju završili Marcel Ručigaj s 1:03.24 i Dušan Zakelšek s 2:05.06. Jakov Srečković slavio je i u disciplini 4x4x4 Blindfolded s vremenom 4:09.28, dok su svi ostali finalisti zabilježili nezavršena slaganja.

Izniman podvig Jakov Srečković ostvario je i u disciplini 3x3x3 Multi-Blind, gdje je točno riješio 37 od 41 kocke u vremenu 59:44, osiguravši prvo mjesto ispred Marcela Ručigaja koji je pogodio 14 od 17 kocki u 52:31. Uz to, Jakov Srečković je osvojio prvo mjesto i na Clocku s prosjekom 4.82 i najboljim pojedinačnim pokušajem od 4.40. U disciplini 3x3x3 Fewest Moves trijumfirao je slovenski predstavnik Dušan Zakelšek s prosjekom 30.33 i najboljim pokušajem od 28 poteza, ispred Balázsa Polyáka i Matica Omuleca.

Iza svjetla reflektora i vodećih postolja kriju se impresivni osobni uspjesi koje tablica rezultata često ne prikazuje u prvom planu. Albert Erdelez odradio je sjajan turnir nastupivši u četiri discipline, pri čemu je ostvario deveto mjesto na Clocku te postavio tri velika osobna rekorda. Na 7x7x7 Cube popravio je vrijeme za čak 16.3 posto na 6:37.59, na 6x6x6 Cube skinuo je 15 posto do novih 4:06.80, dok je na 5x5x5 Cube popravio rezultat za 6 posto na 2:08.75. Marko Obradović upisao je čak sedam disciplina, ostvario peto mjesto u 3x3x3 Multi-Blind te zabilježio svoje prve službene pokušaje u karijeri u disciplinama 3x3x3 Fewest Moves s 50 poteza i 3x3x3 Blindfolded s vremenom 3:57.22.

Uspješan vikend imali su i ostali natjecatelji koji su hrabro napadali nove granice i discipline. Dominik Vidaković natjecao se u šest disciplina, uzeo sedmo mjesto na 6x6x6 Cube i popravio osobni rekord na 5x5x5 Cube za 4.9 posto na 1:02.01. Nenad Marjanović nastupio je u četiri discipline, ostvarivši četvrto mjesto na 5x5x5 Cube uz novi osobni rekord na 6x6x6 Cube od 2:08.07. Dominik Odak odradio je dvije discipline i zauzeo peto mjesto u 3x3x3 Multi-Blind, dok je Karlo Tretinjak nastupio na 3x3x3 Fewest Moves i zauzeo 17. poziciju.

Gledajući ukupnu raspodjelu postolja, natjecatelji iz Slovenije osvojili su ukupno 15 postolja, dok je Hrvatska izborila 11. Mađarska i Njemačka upisale su po dva postolja, a Italija jedno. U iznimno zahtjevnoj disciplini 5x5x5 Blindfolded pobjedu je odnio Matej Bolta, premda su sva tri natjecatelja završila s nezavršenim pokušajima. Bilo je to još jedno uzbudljivo WCA natjecanje koje je pružilo pregršt sjajnih poteza i nezaboravnih trenutaka.

Ovogodišnji Big and Blind Samobor 2024 ponovno je potvrdio važnost ovakvih specijaliziranih turnira za razvoj natjecatelja i širenje zajednice. Mladi talenti pokazali su golem napredak, a postignuti rekordi i osobna poboljšanja daju snažan vjetar u leđa za nadolazeće izazove. Samoborsko natjecanje u slaganju kocke završeno je uz sjajne sportske uspomene i visoko postavljenu ljestvicu za sljedeću sezonu.