Ōtepoti Winter 2023

Ten events and twenty-six rounds filled the schedule in Dunedin, New Zealand, setting the stage for a diverse showcase of mechanical puzzles across August 12 to August 13. While standard speedcubing contests often focus purely on the classic Rubik's Cube, this weekend at the Green Island Bowling Club put specialized disciplines front and center. A focused field of thirty competitors tackled everything from dial-based puzzles to shape-shifting challenges, highlighting the full breadth of the modern cubing scene in 2023.

The specialized events delivered standout performances right away, starting with Square-1, where Adrien Auvray Matyn secured victory over two rounds with a decisive 7.46 winning average and a single solve of 6.02. In Clock, Auvray Matyn demonstrated similar mastery across the face dials, taking top honors with a 5.17 average and a 4.42 single. Jasper Murray followed closely in second with a 6.02 average, while Connor Johnson placed third at 7.78.

Megaminx brought twelve-sided complexity to the tables, where Jasper Murray topped the eleven-player field with a winning average of 47.21, anchored by a best single of 40.55. Henry Eyles claimed second place with a 50.96 average, while Daniel Fraser earned third on the podium with a 1:10.24 mark. Murray also displayed exceptional speed in Pyraminx, taking first place with an ultra-quick 1.52 average after delivering a 1.24 single. Auvray Matyn secured second in the pyramid event with 1.91, and Connor Johnson took third with 2.31.

The rotational challenge of Skewb capped off the non-standard slate, seeing Adrien Auvray Matyn capture another title with a 3.41 winning average and a 3.10 single. His dominance across these diverse platforms set a high technical bar throughout the tournament, offering a vivid contrast to the traditional rotational layers of standard cubes and showcasing how varied modern speed cubing has become.

Beyond the podium battles, significant milestones unfolded across the tables at Ōtepoti Winter 2023. Mehul Pankaj Girhotra logged personal bests by cutting his 2x2x2 Cube mark down to 5.98, which was 72.5 percent faster than his prior best, and tackled his first ever attempt at 4x4x4 Cube in 2:16.97 along with a first Pyraminx solve of 6.62. Bilal Ahmad entered all ten events, achieving a fourth-place finish in Square-1 with a personal best of 19.51, an improvement of 49.3 percent, alongside a Clock best of 14.32. Tim Johnston took on eight events, recording his first ever attempt at Skewb in 6.51 and his first Square-1 attempt in 38.49. Santiago Kin Fernandez Perez improved across three puzzles, posting a 6.98 Skewb personal best, 35.8 percent faster, and a 4.01 in Pyraminx.

Fresh debuts and steady drops continued down the order. Joseph Kelly contested seven events, logging his first ever attempt at 4x4x4 Cube in 1:19.57, his first Square-1 solve in 1:00.58, and a first Skewb attempt of 12.07. Julia Eyles completed eight events, marked by a first ever attempt at 5x5x5 Cube in 2:30.93 and a 19.7 percent Pyraminx improvement to 10.04. First-time WCA competition appearances saw Ahmad Abdul-Rahman deliver an initial 3x3x3 Cube solve of 46.30, while Ollie Warrington completed his first ever attempt in the same category with a 19.06 effort.

When attention turned to classic cubic formats, Jasper Murray maintained full control. In the big cubes, Murray won the 4x4x4 Cube title with a 32.34 average and a 29.84 single, finishing ahead of Henry Eyles at 35.94 and James Dyer at 38.76. Murray followed that by winning the 5x5x5 Cube in 53.76, where Eyles again took second with 1:03.99 and Dyer placed third with 1:06.30. Murray also topped 3x3x3 One-Handed with an 11.41 average, besting Auvray Matyn at 14.48 and Eyles at 18.92.

The main 3x3 results confirmed Jasper Murray as the top overall performer of the gathering. Murray captured the 3x3x3 Cube championship with a 7.59 average and a single solve of 7.04 across three rounds. Adrien Auvray Matyn placed second with an 8.02 average, and Henry Eyles earned third on the podium with 8.71. In the 2x2x2 Cube, Auvray Matyn prevailed with a 2.53 average, leading Connor Johnson at 2.70 and Eyles at 3.90.

Every podium place across the weekend went to domestic competitors, highlighting the depth of local talent present in the region. From the earliest rounds of side puzzles to the final turns of the three-by-three, Ōtepoti Winter 2023 offered a complete view of how multifaceted and competitive a modern cubing competition can be.