Ehte Cube Days 2023

Forty-nine competitors gathered inside Ehte Humanitaargümnaasium across March 18 and March 19, filling the Tallinn, Estonia venue with the constant clatter of plastic and the energy of a bustling cubing competition. While twenty-four rounds across eleven events kept the solving tables active, the weekend stood out equally for the spirit that defined the venue between heats. Solvers traded advice on fingertricks, helped newcomers warm up, and celebrated mutual milestones across two days of open competition in 2023.

The heart of Ehte Cube Days 2023 lived across the side tables, where seasoned veterans sat shoulder to shoulder with debutants. The wide slate of puzzles fostered a shared sense of craft, encouraging participants to test themselves across non-traditional categories such as Clock, Megaminx, and Square-1. Speed cubing in this setting became an exercise in community, where mutual encouragement was as prevalent as the race against the timer in every single heat.

Away from the main stage, the personal breakthroughs across the floor told the richest stories of the tournament. Tormi Püvi delivered one of the weekend highlights by taking on seven events, securing eleventh place in 3x3x3 Blindfolded, and chopping their 2x2x2 Cube personal best down to 1.35 seconds, which was 50.4 percent faster than their prior mark, alongside a 2:09.25 in 5x5x5 Cube and a 25.84 in 3x3x3 One-Handed. Mattias Peetsalu tackled five events, recording a first ever attempt at 3x3x3 One-Handed in 1:06.30 while improving their 2x2x2 Cube mark by 42.1 percent to 4.82 seconds and Pyraminx to 7.88 seconds. Laur Jakob Jänt took on six events and completed first career attempts in 3x3x3 One-Handed with 58.83, 4x4x4 Cube with 2:26.92, and 2x2x2 Cube with 5.20. Ako Monticelli also expanded their repertoire across seven events, posting a first 3x3x3 One-Handed solve of 51.08, a first 5x5x5 Cube solve of 3:00.93, and a 1:20.74 personal best in 4x4x4 Cube that was 19.9 percent faster.

That same commitment to exploration was visible among the newest faces at this WCA competition. Erick Ungefug entered their first official tournament and tackled five distinct disciplines, logging initial marks of 40.18 on the 3x3x3 Cube, 18.28 in Skewb, and 46.29 in Clock. Toomas Teras likewise made their official debut across five events, registering a 22.59 on the 3x3x3 Cube, 6.67 on the 2x2x2 Cube, and 3:38.84 on the 5x5x5 Cube. Alexander Druzbin completed four events at their inaugural tournament, recording 6.38 on the 2x2x2 Cube, 31.86 on the 3x3x3 Cube, and 1:06.64 in Clock. Meanwhile, Kaur-Mattias Kuuskme entered four events, posting debut marks of 7.69 in Skewb and 8.90 in the 2x2x2 Cube while cutting their Pyraminx personal best by 30.6 percent to 7.54 seconds.

The 3x3 results brought tight drama to the final round as Finnish competitor Urho Kinnunen captured the classic Rubik's Cube title with a 7.90 average and a 7.20 single. Kinnunen was pushed closely by Estonia's Kaur Tuule, who claimed second place with a 7.97 average, while Adam Chodyniecki of Poland secured third on the podium with an 8.38 average. The close margins reflected the sharp standard of speedcubing on display throughout the forty-seven entrant field.

Kinnunen orchestrated an exceptional weekend overall at Ehte Cube Days 2023, claiming five individual event titles. Beyond the main Rubik's Cube category, Kinnunen won the 2x2x2 Cube with a 2.49 average, the 4x4x4 Cube with a 32.18 average, Skewb with a 2.80 mark, and Square-1 with an 11.21 average. Poland's Piotr Olszewski took top honors in Pyraminx with a 3.05 winning average, and Estonia's Kait Rosenberg delivered a stellar 1:01.56 average to win the 5x5x5 Cube.

The specialized events offered further variety for the Tallinn crowd. Oliver Pällo delighted home supporters by taking the Clock title with a 5.18 average, while Viljo Elo of Finland mastered the 3x3x3 One-Handed final with an 11.06 average, ahead of Kinnunen's 14.57. In Megaminx, Jan Erik Soosaar took the victory with a 54.30 average. In 3x3x3 Blindfolded, where pure memorisation and precision dictate the outcome, Olli Vikstedt took first place with a single solve of 1:04.12, leading a Finnish one-two ahead of Arttu Puttonen's 1:06.11.

As Ehte Cube Days 2023 concluded, the medal distribution reflected an international sharing of honors, with Finland taking fifteen podium spots, Estonia securing nine, Poland earning eight, and Latvia taking one. Beyond the podium statistics, the gathering reinforced the welcoming culture that unites competitors across divisions and experience levels, leaving the regional cubing community energized for the next chapter of official competition.