Día de Reyes Chiriquí 2024

The tables were set inside the Centro Deportivo La Basita as timers flashed green and solve mats were prepped for a full schedule of puzzle action. Early January marked the dawn of the 2024 calendar, giving regional solvers their very first proving ground of the new year. A field of 20 competitors assembled to test their sharpness across eight rounds of head-to-head solving. Every turn of a layer carried the weight of opening the competitive season on a strong note.

Hosted in David, Chiriquí, Panama on January 6, 2024, Día de Reyes Chiriquí 2024 served as an essential benchmark for the region. The one-day cubing competition featured five distinct disciplines, running from the standard Rubik's Cube to specialized twisty puzzles. For those aiming to set early regional pace, the venue provided the ideal battleground to shake off off-season rust. Solvers from Panama took 14 podium places alongside one medal for Venezuela across the full slate of events.

The premier 3x3x3 Cube event drew all 20 entrants across two rigorous rounds of play. Abiel Pérez of Panama delivered top form to capture first place in the finals, securing a winning average of 11.07 seconds alongside a best single of 10.51 seconds. Leonardo Neptalí Alicastro Palma of Venezuela took second place with an 11.37 average, while Panama's Egdar Castillo rounded out the podium in third with an average of 12.65. The decisive 3x3 results proved that Pérez came into the tournament ready to dictate the season's early standard.

Pérez doubled his gold tally in the 2x2x2 Cube, topping a field of 17 competitors over two rounds. His winning average of 4.25 seconds and best single of 2.81 seconds sealed a dominant display in the smaller puzzle format. Gustavo Ross earned the second step on the podium with a 4.66 average, followed closely by David Laffaurie in third place at 4.83 seconds. Both podium finishers kept the pressure high, but Pérez maintained his consistency to sweep the short-format and traditional cube finals.

In the Pyraminx event, Karla Victoria Suárez Rosario emerged victorious among 16 competitors through two rounds. Her winning average of 4.99 seconds was the only sub-five mark of the round, backed by a quick single of 3.12 seconds. Egdar Antonio Castillo Gonzalez secured second place with an average of 7.02 seconds, while Egdar Castillo earned third place with a 7.36 average. The dynamic event displayed clean execution, giving Suárez Rosario an authoritative early-year victory.

Egdar Castillo controlled the single-round side events, beginning with a triumph in Skewb over 10 entrants. Castillo registered a winning average of 6.87 seconds with a single of 6.27 to claim the top spot, finishing ahead of Karla Victoria Suárez Rosario who took second in 7.40 seconds, and Omar Aguilar in third with 9.75 seconds. Castillo followed that performance with gold in Clock among nine competitors, taking first with an 8.49 average and a 7.74 single, leading Egdar Antonio Castillo Gonzalez at 11.21 and Jonathan David González Araúz at 12.45.

Away from the top of the podium, Día de Reyes Chiriquí 2024 revealed immense progress throughout the roster. Joseph Paul Castillo Vega took on five events, earning a 6th place finish in Clock while cutting his 2x2x2 Cube personal best to 5.24 seconds, an improvement of 57.4 percent, alongside his first ever attempts at Skewb with 16.61 and Clock with 20.20. Javier Rosas entered two events, finishing 5th in Pyraminx with a personal best of 8.78 seconds, 43 percent faster than before, and lowered his 3x3x3 mark to 25.97. Arturo Andrés Buckley Nieto placed 4th in Skewb with a personal best of 6.64 seconds, 38.2 percent quicker, while setting bests of 13.98 in Clock and 4.65 in 2x2x2 Cube. Omar Arrocha took 6th in 3x3x3 Cube with a personal best of 12.86 seconds, an improvement of 20.8 percent, and dropped his Skewb mark to 21.30.

The progress continued with Egdar Rolando Castillo, who entered two disciplines and set a Clock personal best of 26.94 seconds, which was 14.5 percent faster than his prior standard, finishing 7th. A wave of new competitors made their opening marks in speed cubing during the weekend. Pauls Joseph Castillo Vega completed his first WCA competition across four events, logging an 8th place finish in Clock, and posted first-ever marks of 10.81 in 2x2x2 Cube, 10.63 in Pyraminx, and 37.05 in 3x3x3 Cube. José Ismael Rodríguez Aparicio tackled three events in his debut, registering 15.81 in Pyraminx, 10.30 in 2x2x2 Cube, and 25.48 in 3x3x3 Cube. Jorge Mario De Gracia Isaza marked his debut across two disciplines, setting maiden marks of 27.99 in 3x3x3 Cube and 14.00 in 2x2x2 Cube.

With five events resolved and eight rounds in the books, the gathering at Centro Deportivo La Basita highlighted the expanding talent base in the region. Día de Reyes Chiriquí 2024 provided a stage where established speedcubing competitors defended their status while rising entrants set strong baselines. The marks recorded across all five puzzles set an energetic foundation as the community looks forward to the next fixtures on the calendar.