Edinburgh Summer Beginners 2024

Inside the spacious hall of Meadowbank Sports Centre, the rhythm of turning plastic and dropping timers set the tone for a full day of competitive solving. Tables lined the competition floor as competitors took their seats under the bright arena lights, focused on inspection timers and standard stacks. Edinburgh Summer Beginners 2024 brought a lively energy to the Scottish capital on June 23, 2024, gathering puzzle solvers from across the region to test their speed under official World Cube Association regulations in Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh, United Kingdom.

A total of 92 competitors gathered at the venue, taking part in 3 distinct events spread across 5 rounds of action. The single-day speedcubing gathering provided an ideal stage for both seasoned hands and newcomers discovering the atmosphere of a major cubing competition. Across the hall, participants shared inspection tables, cheered successful finishes, and monitored the electronic scoreboards as the opening heats progressed through the morning.

The premier 3x3x3 Cube event drew a large field of 90 competitors through three rounds of elimination. In the final, Thomas Vickers delivered a composed sequence of solves to claim the title with a winning average of 14.04 seconds, powered by a best single of 10.23 seconds. Jack Snowden pushed hard throughout the final round, taking second place with an average of 14.19 seconds, while Liam Bryan secured third place with a 16.02 average in the official 3x3 results of the day.

Thomas Vickers continued his strong run on the 2x2x2 Cube, topping a field of 71 competitors in a direct single round. Vickers secured the gold with a 4.07 average and a 2.88 single, completing a double victory for the weekend. Finlay Meakin took the silver medal with an average of 5.75 seconds alongside a single of 4.28 seconds, while Drake Jain earned bronze with an average of 5.80 seconds and a best single of 4.76 seconds.

The Pyraminx brought dynamic speed cubing action to the tables with 61 competitors tackling the tetrahedral puzzle across a single round. Ollie Feeney captured the top spot on the podium with a winning average of 8.43 seconds, anchored by a best single solve of 7.19 seconds. Thomas Vickers added to his medal haul by claiming second place with an 8.52 average, followed closely by Theo Platt in third with an average of 9.11 seconds.

Beyond the podium battles, Edinburgh Summer Beginners 2024 served as a breakthrough stage for competitors lowering their marks across multiple disciplines. Faith Nolan made substantial leaps across three events, dropping her 2x2x2 Cube personal best to 4.36 seconds, an improvement of 55.6 percent, while cutting her 3x3x3 Cube mark to 22.64 seconds and her Pyraminx best to 13.41 seconds. Ben Trotter cut his 3x3x3 Cube best by 55.2 percent down to 19.97 seconds to place 19th, while also completing a first official attempt at the 2x2x2 Cube in 7.64 seconds. Lewis Turner improved his Pyraminx record by 50.8 percent to 10.44 seconds and lowered his 3x3x3 Cube best by 18.5 percent to 19.05 seconds. Archie Grieve cut his 3x3x3 Cube personal best by 50.3 percent to 19.46 seconds and reduced his Pyraminx mark by 44.2 percent to 8.76 seconds.

The progress continued across the scorecards as Alex Ironside improved their 2x2x2 Cube personal best by 46.6 percent to 14.25 seconds. Finn Briggs dropped their 2x2x2 Cube mark by 44.9 percent down to 6.72 seconds, while shaving 30.2 percent off their 3x3x3 Cube standard to 26.42 seconds. Newcomers also embraced the floor in their first WCA competition appearances. Josh Bertenshaw achieved a standout 9th-place finish in Pyraminx with an initial attempt of 5.83 seconds, alongside opening marks in the 2x2x2 Cube and Rubik's Cube. Elliot Cassidy also took on three events in his debut, securing an 18th-place Pyraminx result with an initial mark of 12.06 seconds.

The competition concluded with United Kingdom competitors securing eight of the nine available podium positions, joined on the medal table by Drake Jain representing the USA. As the final rounds wrapped up at Meadowbank Sports Centre, Edinburgh Summer Beginners 2024 left a mark on the 2024 calendar as a showcase of rapid solving, personal bests, and competitive spirit.