Lincolnshire Winter 2023

One hundred and ninety-four competitors stepped onto the stage over two days of intense speedcubing as Lincolnshire Winter 2023 brought twenty-four rounds of high-stakes puzzle solving to Spalding, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom. Hosted inside the spacious halls of the Springfields Events & Conference Centre on February 25 and February 26, the weekend carried the vibrant energy of a top-tier WCA competition. Solve tables buzzed continuously with activity while participants from around the world gathered under the venue roof to test their turning speed and mental endurance in the first major regional gathering of 2023.

The premier event drew massive focus as 184 entrants tackled the classic Rubik's Cube across four rigorous rounds. Luke Burns delivered unmatched consistency in the final, securing victory in the 3x3x3 Cube with a winning average of 8.27 seconds, backed by a best single solve of 6.37 seconds. Cham J. Chambers claimed the runner-up spot with an average of 8.53 seconds, while Ben Stokes finished third on a 9.42 average. The decisive 3x3 results capped a fiercely contested sequence of heats that kept the main arena engrossed throughout Sunday afternoon.

Luke Burns added another trophy to his weekend tally in the 2x2x2 Cube, outpacing a field of 147 competitors to win with a blistering 1.87 average and a best single of 1.51 seconds. Ben Stokes and Danny Morgan secured second and third places respectively, matching each other with identical 2.53 averages. The competition also witnessed a massive wave of national record marks in the 2x2x2 event from competitors across multiple federations, including David Forsell of Sweden, Archie Fedulov of Russia, and Ian Gerleman of the USA.

Cham J. Chambers orchestrated an exceptional multi-event campaign across the competition programme, taking three championship titles across different disciplines. Chambers clinched first place in the 4x4x4 Cube with an average of 31.28 seconds, besting Matthew Lowe at 32.94 and Daniel Partridge at 34.54. Chambers then demonstrated remarkable dexterity in the 3x3x3 One-Handed final, averaging 14.94 seconds to top Max Kwok U Sam of Macau and Tymofii Sukachov of Ukraine, before conquering Clock with an exceptional 3.65 average ahead of Sam Shaw and William Austin.

Daniel Partridge stood tall in the technical events, capturing top honours in Pyraminx with an average of 2.36 seconds in a narrow finish ahead of Edward Burgess at 2.38 and Vladimir Vasiliev at 3.65. Partridge also prevailed in the 5x5x5 Cube, producing a winning mark of 1:03.14 to edge Chambers at 1:03.39 and Stokes at 1:04.72. The remaining puzzles rounded out a varied schedule as Harvie Partridge won Skewb in 4.46 seconds, Charlie Stark dominated Square-1 with an 8.61 average, and Ben Stokes conquered the 3x3x3 Blindfolded division with a single solve of 22.02 seconds.

Away from the top of the podiums, the cubing competition saw extraordinary milestones and personal breakthroughs across every round. Matthew Ayre took on eight events and posted phenomenal gains, dropping his 3x3x3 One-Handed personal best by 69.6 percent to 18.36 seconds and reducing his Square-1 mark by 67 percent to 15.32 seconds. Jacob Byford-Rew tackled nine events during the weekend, executing his first ever attempts at Square-1 with a time of 40.80 and Clock with a 14.31, while improving his Pyraminx personal best by 60.3 percent down to 8.08 seconds. Harvey Mitchell achieved a 54 percent improvement on the 4x4x4 Cube with a 43.41 personal best and recorded his first official runs in 3x3x3 One-Handed and Skewb.

Other competitors marked substantial progress as they expanded their event repertoires on the Lincolnshire stage. Zack Mitchell logged first attempts in 3x3x3 One-Handed, Skewb, and 4x4x4 Cube, earning a 57th place finish in Skewb. Ash J. Kelly completed a versatile seven-event run that included debut attempts in 3x3x3 One-Handed, Square-1, and 2x2x2 Cube. Jensen Piltz delivered a first official Pyraminx mark of 4.49 seconds, while Illia Dniprovskyi lowered their Pyraminx personal best by 34.7 percent to 5.35 seconds. Harry Capper also achieved notable advancement, trimming 31.4 percent from their 3x3x3 Cube best to reach 23.50 seconds alongside first attempts in Skewb and Pyraminx.

The atmosphere inside the Springfields Events & Conference Centre reflected the broad appeal and community spirit that defines modern speed cubing. United Kingdom competitors captured twenty-seven podium placements across the ten events, alongside international representation from Macau, Ukraine, and Russia. As Lincolnshire Winter 2023 came to a close, the weekend demonstrated the immense depth of talent across every category, delivering memorable personal milestones, fast solves, and spirited rivalries that set a high benchmark for the competitive season ahead.