Medvode Open 2024

Inside Osnovna šola Simona Jenka in Smlednik, the steady clack of plastic and the tap of timing mats set the pace as 71 competitors gathered in Medvode, Slovenia. The two-day schedule spanning November 23 to November 24 brought a full slate of seven events and 12 total rounds. Tables lined the hall as participants prepared their puzzles, watched display timers, and reviewed brackets across each discipline.

The opening phase of Medvode Open 2024 established strong momentum across preliminary rounds in classical and side disciplines. With 68 solvers entering the main 3x3x3 Cube event, early heats narrowed the field toward the multi-round deciders. Speedcubing enthusiasts followed the progress across three full rounds of traditional solving alongside fast-paced brackets in 2x2x2 Cube, Pyraminx, and Skewb.

Saturday set up intense showdowns as Alexey Tsvetkov emerged as the dominant force across nearly every discipline. In the 3x3x3 Cube final, Tsvetkov secured first place with an average of 6.46 seconds and a best single of 5.73. Tomaž Saje finished in second place with a 9.78 average, while Simon Mars earned third place at 10.42. The 3x3 results highlighted the sharp standard at the front of the main field in the 2024 gathering.

Tsvetkov continued his winning run across every other event he contested. In 2x2x2 Cube, he topped the 64-person roster with a 1.44 average, followed by Jakob Kitak in second at 3.31 and Filip Premužić in third at 3.60. Tsvetkov also claimed the Pyraminx title with a 2.17 average ahead of Kitak at 3.48 and Gal Brumec at 3.49. In Skewb, Tsvetkov took top honors with a 3.33 average, edging Kitak at 3.53 and Gregor Mikic at 4.88.

Single-round formats also rewarded precise execution across specialty puzzles. Tsvetkov captured the Clock title with a 4.60 average, besting Tajda Horvat at 6.51 and Filip Barbirič Frank at 6.90. In 3x3x3 One-Handed, Tsvetkov won with a 10.68 average, with Saje taking second at 15.11 and Mars claiming third at 18.11. The lone event title that escaped Tsvetkov went to Anton Kokalj Pezzano, who won Square-1 with a 10.77 average ahead of Nika Arsov at 17.43 and Bruno Ivančić at 19.07.

Beyond the podiums, the official score sheets recorded significant milestones for developing solvers. Stefan Skubilović took on five events and secured a 17th-place finish in 3x3x3 One-Handed, logging a 3x3x3 Cube personal best of 10.67 that was 43 percent faster than his prior mark of 18.71, alongside a 34.23 one-handed mark that was 32.5 percent faster, and making a first ever attempt at Skewb in 6.61. Luka Lep contested six events and reached fifth in Skewb, cutting his personal best to 2.33 from 3.92 for a 40.6 percent improvement while posting a 14.80 3x3x3 Cube personal best. Erik Žorž entered four events, posting a 34.16 in 3x3x3 Cube that was 40.5 percent faster than his previous 57.40, while completing a first ever attempt at Pyraminx in 17.42 and a first ever attempt at Skewb in 21.75. Jakob Peternel lowered his 3x3x3 Cube personal best by 40 percent to 23.86 from 39.75 across three events and registered a first ever attempt at Skewb with an 11.07.

Other competitors delivered major breakthroughs across diverse puzzles at the cubing competition. Julijan Virag tackled seven events and placed 18th in Square-1, dropping his Clock personal best by 37.2 percent to 15.55 from 24.77, improving his Square-1 best by 28.5 percent to 52.42, and setting a 15.21 personal best in 3x3x3 Cube. Blaž Humar participated in four events, lowering his 3x3x3 Cube best by 33.6 percent to 13.93 from 20.98 and making a first ever attempt at Pyraminx in 11.46 and Skewb in 9.78. Lara Pernar took on five events, placing 30th in Clock, setting a first ever attempt at Clock with 41.53, and lowering her 2x2x2 Cube personal best to 9.14 from 11.53 for a 20.7 percent drop. Ludvik Domicijan Vrhovšek completed six events with a 12th-place finish in Skewb, a first ever attempt at Pyraminx in 10.87, a 3.74 personal best in 2x2x2 Cube, and a 51.23 mark in Square-1.

The 2x2x2 Cube event generated notable regional records throughout the rounds, where Tsvetkov set marks of 1.13 single and 1.55 average, while Slovenian contenders including Tisa Megušar with a 2.19 single and 3.23 average, and Jakob Kitak with a 2.40 single and 3.27 average, contributed to the record books alongside several peers. Across the entire weekend of speed cubing, Slovenian competitors captured 13 podium places, Russia collected six, and Croatia took two.

When the final solves of the classic Rubik's Cube concluded on Sunday afternoon, Medvode Open 2024 came to a close having tested solvers across seven distinct categories. The successful run of rounds in Smlednik demonstrated the depth of talent throughout the region, setting an energetic standard as competitors look ahead to the next stops of the tournament season.

71 tekmovalcev se je 23. in 24. novembra 2024 zbralo na prizorišču Osnovna šola Simona Jenka, Smlednik, kjer je potekalo tekmovanje Medvode Open 2024. V dvanajstih krogih in sedmih različnih disciplinah je bil razplet v znamenju izjemne prevlade enega samega tekmovalca. Alexey Tsvetkov je namreč slavil v kar šestih od sedmih razpisanih disciplin ter povsem zaznamoval dogajanje na tekmovalnih mizah v kraju Medvode, Slovenia.

Kraljevska disciplina 3x3x3 Cube je prinesla prepričljivo zmago, saj je Alexey Tsvetkov zmagal s povprečjem 6.46 v finalu, medtem ko je njegov najboljši posamični poskus znašal 5.73 sekunde. V konkurenci 68 tekmovalcev skozi tri kroge je drugo mesto zasedel domači predstavnik Tomaž Saje s povprečjem 9.78 sekunde, tretje mesto pa je pripadlo Simonu Marsu, ki je v finalu zabeležil povprečje 10.42 sekunde.

Tudi v preostalih hitrostnih disciplinah je bil Alexey Tsvetkov nepremagljiv. Pri 2x2x2 Cube je zmagal s povprečjem 1.44 in posamičnim časom 1.19 sekunde, pred tekmovalcema kot sta Jakob Kitak s povprečjem 3.31 ter Filip Premužić s 3.60 sekunde. Pri Pyraminxu je Tsvetkov slavil s povprečjem 2.17 sekunde, pred Jakobom Kitakom s 3.48 in Galom Brumcem s 3.49 sekunde. V disciplini Skewb je zmagovalni čas znašal 3.33 sekunde, kjer sta se na zmagovalni oder povzpela še Jakob Kitak s povprečjem 3.53 in Gregor Mikic s 4.88 sekunde.

Zmagoviti niz se je nadaljeval tudi pri posebnih mehanskih izzivih. V disciplini Clock je Alexey Tsvetkov zmagal s povprečjem 4.60 sekunde, kjer sta mu sledila Tajda Horvat s 6.51 in Filip Barbirič Frank s 6.90 sekunde. Pri enoročnem reševanju 3x3x3 One-Handed je Tsvetkov slavil s časom 10.68 sekunde, na stopničkah pa sta se mu pridružila Tomaž Saje s povprečjem 15.11 ter Simon Mars s povprečjem 18.11 sekunde.

Edina disciplina, kjer zmaga ni odšla v roke ruskega tekmovalca, je bila Square-1. V tej tehnično zahtevni preizkušnji je slavil domači tekmovalec Anton Kokalj Pezzano, ki je zmagal s povprečnim časom 10.77 sekunde in najboljšim poskusom 9.08 sekunde. Drugo mesto je zasedla Nika Arsov s povprečjem 17.43 sekunde, tretji pa je bil hrvaški predstavnik Bruno Ivančić s časom 19.07 sekunde.

Izven boja za najvišja mesta je uradno WCA tekmovanje ponudilo številne osebne mejnike za manj izpostavljene tekmovalce. Erazem Janžekovič je nastopil v 3 disciplinah ter postavil nov osebni rekord pri Pyraminxu s časom 8.65 sekunde, kar je 23.9 odstotka hitreje od njegovega prejšnjega dosežka, ob tem pa postavil še osebni rekord pri klasični kocki z 11.30 sekunde. Martina Judež je v svojem šestem nastopu zabeležila 26. mesto v disciplini Clock z novim osebnim rekordom 15.37 sekunde, kar je 7.9 odstotka hitreje, ter se prvič preizkusila pri Skewbu s časom 14.54 sekunde. Marija Judež se je pomerila v 4 disciplinah, kjer je prvič tekmovala v disciplini 3x3x3 Cube s časom 47.69 sekunde, pri Pyraminxu izboljšala rekord na 11.68 sekunde, kar je 4 odstotke hitreje, in postavila osebni rekord pri Skewbu z 10.38 sekunde. Petar Kudelić je zabeležil svoj prvi nastop pri 2x2x2 Cube s časom 10.76 sekunde ter dosegel osebni rekord pri 3x3x3 Cube s časom 33.66 sekunde.

Za nekatere udeležence je bil ta vikend sploh prvi stik s tekmovalnim prizoriščem. Jernej Božič je uspešno opravil svoj prvi nastop v sklopu združenja ter se preizkusil v 4 disciplinah, pri čemer je zabeležil prve čase pri Skewbu z 10.71, pri 3x3x3 Cube z 22.94 in pri Pyraminxu z 10.55 sekunde. Tudi Izak Ožura je debitiral s 4 disciplinami in postavil svoje prve rezultate pri Skewbu z 18.40, pri Pyraminxu z 9.31 ter pri 2x2x2 Cube s 6.91 sekunde. Aleš Rus je na svojem prvem tekmovanju nastopil v 2 disciplinah ter postavil začetna časa 14.42 pri 3x3x3 Cube in 6.83 sekunde pri 2x2x2 Cube. Hrvaški debitant Andrej Šimić je prav tako nastopil v 2 disciplinah ter vpisal svoja prva tekmovalna rezultata, in sicer 45.25 sekunde pri klasični kocki ter 13.30 sekunde pri manjši kocki.

Dvodnevni dogodek Medvode Open 2024 je ponudil pestro bero uvrstitev na zmagovalni oder, kjer so slovenski predstavniki zbrali kar 13 uvrstitev med najboljše tri, Rusija 6 in Hrvaška 2. Klasična Rubikova kocka in vsi ostali formati so privabili širok spekter ljubiteljev discipline speedcubing, ki so z zanimanjem spremljali razburljive dvoboje na vseh nivojih.

Uspešno izvedeno prvenstvo Medvode Open 2024 je znova potrdilo izjemen tekmovalni duh in organizacijsko raven tovrstnih srečanj. Sedemdeset ena nastopajočih je zaključilo nastope v vseh predvidenih kategorijah, s čimer se je uspešno sklenilo tekmovalno dogajanje tega konca tedna v Smledniku.