Chemung Cubing 2023

Sixty competitors stepped up to the tables at the Arnot Event Center for Chemung Cubing 2023, turning Horseheads, New York, USA into a bustling hub of speedcubing across August 5 and August 6. Over two packed days, the gathering featured eleven official events spread across twenty rounds, offering a full showcase of modern puzzle discipline. For several newcomers in the field, this official WCA competition marked the very start of their tournament journeys. Stepping onto the tournament floor for an opening solve brings an entirely distinct rush, turning months of solitary practice into registered times on the official board.

The premier 3x3x3 Cube event drew 59 entrants through three intense rounds, highlighting the weekend's classic Rubik's Cube action. When the final round wrapped up, Chloe Gu captured first place with an impressive winning average of 7.36 seconds and a best single time of 6.83. Noah Kim took the second step on the podium with a 7.77 average, while Noah Melita claimed third place averaging 8.34. The official 3x3 results capped an exhilarating sequence of solves that kept the venue abuzz throughout Sunday afternoon.

Evan Liu produced an extraordinary run across the tournament, topping the standings across six separate events. Liu took victory in the 4x4x4 Cube with a winning average of 33.31 seconds, holding off Chloe Gu and Louis Truong. Continuing into the heavier hardware, Liu secured first place in the 5x5x5 Cube with an average of 1:02.56, topped the 6x6x6 Cube with a 1:49.71 average, and won the 7x7x7 Cube with a 2:49.84 mark. Liu also showed rapid precision in Clock to finish first with a flat 6.00 average.

The complexity peaked in the blindfolded discipline, where competitors must memorize the scrambled state entirely before lowering their blindfolds to solve the puzzle. Evan Liu earned another gold with a best single solve of 1:12.57 in the 3x3x3 Blindfolded final, followed by Noah Kim who posted a single of 5:55.85. Across other hardware categories, Addy Coolidge secured the top spot in Skewb with a 5.02 average, while Noah Kim delivered a sharp performance in 3x3x3 One-Handed, claiming victory with a 12.05 average and a blistering 9.70 single.

Shorter puzzles delivered equally high stakes at Chemung Cubing 2023, where Noah Melita secured a double victory. Melita claimed top honors in Pyraminx with an average of 4.85 seconds, edging out Evan Liu and Clem Tucker. In the 2x2x2 Cube, Melita took the title with a rapid 2.63 average, finishing just two hundredths of a second ahead of Ethan Zhuang, who took second place at 2.65, while Liu rounded out the podium in third. The 2x2x2 rounds also saw extensive personal records set across the field, reflecting how sharply competitors pushed their turning speed.

Beyond the podium battles, the real spirit of the weekend unfolded across the middle ranks where personal milestones were shattered. Vincent Saliceti tackled nine events and logged a massive 4x4x4 Cube personal best of 58.41 seconds, which was 55.4 percent faster than his previous mark, along with taking on his first ever attempt at 5x5x5 Cube at 2:27.62. Rodolfo Paiz entered seven events and dropped his 3x3x3 One-Handed personal best down to 35.80 seconds, an improvement of 58.2 percent, while recording his first ever attempt at Skewb in 10.85 seconds. Milo Kittleson took on eight events and lowered his Pyraminx personal best by 52.2 percent down to 5.02 seconds, alongside making his first ever attempt at 3x3x3 One-Handed at 27.93 seconds. Benjamin Bell posted a Pyraminx personal best of 4.95 seconds, 43.2 percent faster than before, while logging his first ever attempt at 4x4x4 Cube in 2:01.31.

The roster was equally enriched by newcomers expanding their competitive repertoires across multiple disciplines. Charley Eucker registered his first ever attempt at 4x4x4 Cube with a 1:32.39 mark and dropped his Clock personal best by 46.2 percent to 23.47 seconds. Ruei-An Tsai took on eight events, logging a fifth-place finish in 3x3x3 One-Handed alongside a first ever attempt at Skewb in 4.94 seconds. Ariana Machado made her first WCA competition appearance count by taking on seven events, recording an eleventh-place best finish in 5x5x5 Cube with a debut mark of 2:33.68 and putting up a 15.90 first attempt in the 3x3x3 Cube. Andrew You also made his first tournament appearance, entering six events and registering debut efforts of 12.67 seconds in 2x2x2 Cube and 14.12 seconds in Pyraminx.

Every official speed cubing gathering thrives on this mix of seasoned champions and emerging talent. Over two demanding days in Horseheads during the 2023 season, competitors logged hundreds of solves that tested nerves, memory, and finger dexterity. As Chemung Cubing 2023 concluded, the sixty participants left the Arnot Event Center with fresh personal milestones and valuable stage experience to build upon for the future.