Rebel County Cubing 2024

Irish cubers achieved a dominant sweep across the weekend at Rebel County Cubing 2024, securing an overwhelming 26 of the 33 available podium positions. The tournament, held across January 13 and January 14 at the Charleville Park Hotel in Charleville, Cork, Ireland, gathered 78 competitors across 11 different events and 22 rounds. Leading the charge on home soil was Ciarán Beahan, who mounted an extraordinary campaign by claiming gold in six separate disciplines, sealing Ireland's commanding presence in nearly every category on the schedule.

The premier 3x3x3 Rubik's Cube final stood as the clearest showcase of domestic dominance, resulting in an all-Irish podium. Beahan took the title with a 7.01 winning average in the final, bolstered by an earlier best single of 6.62 among 71 entrants across three rounds of play. CJ Furey followed closely behind in second place with an average of 7.36, while Oscar Green completed the clean sweep for Ireland by locking down third place with an 8.06 mark, anchoring the weekend's standout 3x3 results.

Beyond the main event, Beahan's remarkable run continued across the larger puzzles and specialty categories. He secured victory in the 4x4x4 Cube with a 25.42 average and best single of 23.76, ahead of second-place Cillian Hainbach at 37.43 and Germany's Leonard Wetzel at 38.02. In the 5x5x5 Cube, Beahan clocked a 46.58 winning average, again clear of Hainbach at 1:07.90 and Furey at 1:15.19. The Irish standout added further victories in the 6x6x6 Cube with a 1:20.30 average and the 7x7x7 Cube with a 1:58.51 average, alongside a first-place performance in 3x3x3 One-Handed at 12.82.

Ireland's control of the leaderboards extended throughout the remaining events of the speedcubing schedule. In Clock, Rían Burke posted a winning average of 4.98 to lead another Irish sweep, flanked by William Carey in second with 5.84 and Aidan Browne in third with 6.10. Cathal Burke delivered a crisp 2.48 average to win Skewb, while Lucas Patrick Dowling topped the 2x2x2 Cube final with a 2.52 average ahead of Carey's 3.15 and Wetzel's 3.29. In the blindfolded disciplines, Colm McCarthy secured the 3x3x3 Blindfolded crown with a 29.87 single, and Ben Timmons prevailed in 3x3x3 Multi-Blind by solving 6 out of 6 cubes in 39:23.

Beyond the top steps of the podium, Rebel County Cubing 2024 served as a platform for breakthrough personal marks. Sean Seamus Maher shaved massive time off his previous standards, cutting 57.2 percent off his Skewb mark to hit 9.99, improving his 2x2x2 Cube standard by 45.7 percent to 5.93, and trying the 4x4x4 Cube for the first time with a 2:19.03. Matthew O'Neill made a sharp jump in Skewb, cutting his best by 54 percent down to 6.72. Kenna Lyons logged a 43 percent improvement in the 2x2x2 Cube with a 3.41, while also logging initial attempts in Clock at 18.84 and 3x3x3 One-Handed at 1:22.69. Jamie Blennerhassett took on 10 events, finishing 11th in the 7x7x7 Cube, posting an initial 5x5x5 Cube mark of 3:06.46, and cutting 43.2 percent off his Clock mark to reach 21.22.

Other competitors similarly seized the moment across the weekend's packed schedule. Jonah O'Driscoll tackled seven events, earning a 17th-place finish in 2x2x2 Cube, logging a first Clock solve of 27.21, and dropping his 3x3x3 One-Handed mark by 37.8 percent to 29.09. Oisin James Waldron logged six events, lowering his Clock time by 35 percent to 16.04 and cutting more than 30 percent from his previous bests in both One-Handed and 4x4x4 Cube. Richard Gravitis completed seven events, setting a One-Handed standard of 39.98 to beat his old mark by 39.4 percent while logging first-ever attempts in Clock and 5x5x5 Cube. Meanwhile, Daragh Boland took part in their first WCA competition, recording initial marks across five events including a 21.35 in the 3x3x3 Cube.

International competitors also made their mark on the Charleville leaderboards despite the host nation's broad success. Germany earned five podium positions across the tournament, powered largely by Leonard Wetzel, who earned third-place finishes in the 2x2x2 Cube, 4x4x4 Cube, and 6x6x6 Cube. Ukraine gathered two podium finishes, highlighted by Nikita Grytsenko taking third place in the 3x3x3 Blindfolded event with a single of 1:50.45, behind McCarthy and Carey.

The 2024 edition of this speed cubing gathering concluded after two full days of high-level solving in Cork. With 78 entrants pushing their limits through 22 rounds, the cubing competition underscored the immense depth of talent in Irish speedcubing while providing newcomers and seasoned solvers alike a chance to set fresh personal benchmarks. From six individual event wins by Beahan to memorable milestone solves across every bracket, Rebel County Cubing 2024 delivered a memorable weekend of classic tournament action.