Guayaco Open 2023

Inside the bustling atmosphere at Malecon del Salado, solve mats were neatly laid out and timers waited beneath the hall lights as Guayaquil, Ecuador welcomed competitors for Guayaco Open 2023. Taking place on April 22, 2023, the gathering brought together 35 competitors for 11 fast-paced rounds across eight events. Solving stations stood ready for hours of intense manipulation, where precision in every turn defined the difference between a podium finish and elimination.

Mean-of-3 formats and strict cutoff formats leave zero margin for error in competitive speedcubing. In disciplines where every attempt counts directly toward the final standing, a single miscalculated rotation or momentary hesitation ruins an entire round. The technical demands of three-solve formats require complete discipline from start to finish, as competitors cannot rely on dropping their worst time to salvage an average. At this WCA competition, that sharp reality was on full display throughout the venue.

The blindfolded discipline demonstrated this exact pressure in its starkest form. In 3x3x3 Blindfolded, Luis Fernando Aldás Cuestas delivered a calculated performance requiring thorough memorisation, posting a winning average of 1:53.62 alongside the best single of the event at 1:27.14. Luke Silva Zambrano faced the unforgiving nature of the discipline, finishing second after a DNF ended their title chase in a format where a single unresolved piece costs the entire solve.

Dereck Estrada produced an extraordinary showing across the weekend, claiming four separate tournament victories. Estrada captured top honours in the classic Rubik's Cube, delivering consistent speed in the final to finish with a winning average of 9.80 and a best single of 8.48 over three rounds of 3x3 results. Mateo Baruc Mero Benavides followed in second place with an average of 10.77, while Joao Crofford rounded out the podium in third place at 10.87.

Estrada continued to assert control in the 2x2x2 Cube, securing the gold with an average of 2.77 after posting a 2.20 best single in the final round. Raúl Gómez claimed second place with an average of 2.94, followed by Caleb Salcedo Rivera in third at 3.50. Estrada then conquered the 4x4x4 Cube, taking the title with an average of 34.16 and a best single of 31.14, staying ahead of Caleb Salcedo Rivera at 38.44 and Mateo Baruc Mero Benavides at 48.41.

Beyond the championship battles at Guayaco Open 2023, the event saw remarkable individual progress from dedicated competitors across the board. Fabrizcio Gabriele Schiepatti Cedeño took on three events, achieving a 7th place finish in 3x3x3 Cube with a personal best of 11.25 that was 29 percent faster than his previous mark, while making his first ever attempts in 4x4x4 Cube at 50.12 and 3x3x3 One-Handed at 31.54. Glenn Mathias Cansing Macias lowered his 2x2x2 Cube personal best by 46.8 percent to 4.28 across two events. Antonio Matos García improved his 2x2x2 Cube mark by 38.4 percent to 13.81 and cut his 3x3x3 Cube time by 37.4 percent to 57.75. Eduardo David Cedeño Palacios tackled five events, finishing 9th in Skewb while improving his 4x4x4 Cube personal best by 24.3 percent to 57.57.

The progress continued with several competitors taking on new challenges at this cubing competition. José Andrés Perdomo Mendívez lowered his 3x3x3 Cube personal best by 27.7 percent to 14.82. Julio Cabrera entered four events, posting a best finish of 6th in 3x3x3 Cube while setting a personal best of 55.38 in 4x4x4 Cube and clocking 27.70 in 3x3x3 One-Handed. Sonner Cortez Ojeda recorded a 3x3x3 Cube personal best of 15.52, improving by 22.3 percent, and finished 13th in 3x3x3 One-Handed with a personal best of 54.44. Edgar Moisés Valencia Segura contested four events and claimed 4th in 4x4x4 Cube, setting a personal best of 45.52 which was 5.6 percent faster than before.

In the remaining events, Caleb Salcedo Rivera took victory in 3x3x3 One-Handed with an average of 16.56, holding off Dereck Estrada at 19.42 and Mateo Baruc Mero Benavides at 19.52. Estrada earned his fourth title in Megaminx with an average of 52.79, ahead of Salcedo Rivera at 57.04 and Luis Fernando Aldás Cuestas at 1:23.90. Moisés Ignacio Villena Mejía secured the Skewb title with an average of 6.53, leading Aldás Cuestas at 6.85 and Michael Kevin Astudillo Muñoz at 9.51. Mateo Baruc Mero Benavides claimed top spot in Pyraminx with an average of 5.51, ahead of Leonardo Miguel Viteri Cardenas at 6.37 and Fernando Zevallos at 6.86.

With 23 podium positions earned exclusively by competitors from Ecuador, the day concluded as a thorough showcase of local speed cubing talent. Guayaco Open 2023 tested nerve and execution across varied puzzle sizes and strict judging conditions at Malecon del Salado, leaving the field ready for the next challenges of the competitive circuit.