San Diego Newcomers 2024

129 competitors gathered on March 16, 2024, bringing high energy to UC San Diego as the tournament unfolded across four separate disciplines. While one-handed solving on the classic Rubik's Cube is famed across speedcubing for testing pure ergonomics, table control, and fingertrick efficiency with a single hand, the two-handed events at San Diego Newcomers 2024 proved every bit as demanding of precision and mechanical discipline. Across nine fast-paced rounds, solvers managed rapid turn speeds and decisive transitions on the tournament tables in Southern California.

The 3x3x3 Cube contest stood at the center of the schedule, drawing a massive field of 126 entrants through three distinct rounds. The official 3x3 results culminated in an exceptional performance by Kyeongmin Choi representing Korea, who captured first place with an average of 7.28 seconds in the final round. Joaquin Ruenes Hernández of Mexico pushed the pace to claim the runner-up spot with an average of 7.61 seconds, while Henry Helmuth of the USA secured third place on the podium with an average of 8.49 seconds. Choi also logged the fastest individual single solve of the event at 6.15 seconds.

Choi repeated his winning form in the 2x2x2 Cube, topping a competitive field of 101 entrants over two rounds of play. In the final, Choi posted a winning average of 1.69 seconds alongside a best single of 1.40 seconds to take the gold medal. Hernández followed closely behind in second place with a mark of 1.85 seconds, and Angel Muñoz of Mexico completed the podium in third with an average of 2.52 seconds. The competition saw a flurry of rapid attempts in the event, including personal record single efforts of 1.03 seconds from Hernández and 1.19 seconds from Choi.

The side events brought further excitement to the schedule at San Diego Newcomers 2024, where Joaquin Ruenes Hernández took charge of the leaderboard. In the Pyraminx event, which drew 88 competitors across two rounds, Hernández captured victory with a decisive winning average of 2.66 seconds and a best single of 2.10 seconds. Choi earned the silver medal with an average of 3.13 seconds, while Franklin Pham of the USA secured third position with a mark of 3.44 seconds. The event showcased rapid vertex manipulation and clean mechanical accuracy.

Hernández continued his dominance in the Skewb event, navigating a field of 71 competitors over two rounds to claim his second gold medal of the weekend. The Mexican speedcuber registered a winning average of 3.46 seconds and a best single time of 2.97 seconds. August Barnard of the USA took second place with an average of 4.82 seconds, while Dean Jacob Adamo Susskind of the USA took third with an average of 5.43 seconds. The result concluded a standout individual performance that saw Hernández appear on four separate podiums.

Away from the top steps of the podium, the heart of this WCA competition belonged to personal breakthroughs and ambitious milestones. Michael A. Arguello Cervantes produced massive drops across multiple puzzles, cutting his 2x2x2 Cube personal best by 68.4 percent down to 5.78 seconds and slicing his 3x3x3 Cube best by 48.5 percent to 29.31 seconds, alongside a first official Pyraminx attempt of 16.95 seconds. Jesus Joaquin Chavez entered four events, cutting his 2x2x2 Cube mark by 45 percent down to 5.41 seconds while logging first-ever tournament attempts of 11.81 seconds on Skewb and 9.98 seconds on Pyraminx. Silas Dowers tackled four events, taking his 3x3x3 Cube personal record down by 44.8 percent to 16.74 seconds while posting debut attempts of 10.02 on Pyraminx and 6.20 on Skewb.

Other competitors similarly embraced the busy program by entering new puzzles and setting huge marks. Brendan Barraclough completed his first official 2x2x2 Cube solve in 6.32 seconds and improved his Pyraminx personal best by 38 percent to 6.47 seconds. Knox Gardinier lowered his 2x2x2 Cube record by 37.7 percent to 5.17 seconds while attempting Pyraminx and Skewb for the first time with marks of 11.98 and 18.94 seconds respectively. Gabriel Alejandro Ruiaz logged inaugural attempts of 16.07 on Pyraminx and 17.74 on Skewb alongside a 32.8 percent improvement in 2x2x2 Cube to 7.73 seconds. Logan Govic lowered his 3x3x3 Cube best by 30.6 percent to 18.51 seconds while adding debut marks in Pyraminx and Skewb, and Brandon Vinh took on four events, trimming his 2x2x2 Cube best by 28 percent to 17.62 seconds.

The overall country standings at San Diego Newcomers 2024 highlighted an impressive international spread across the twelve available podium positions. Competitors representing Mexico led the medal tally with 5 podium finishes, followed closely by the USA with 4 podium spots and Korea with 3 podium places. The high standard of execution throughout the single-day gathering provided an intense showcase of modern speed cubing fundamentals at UC San Diego in San Diego, California, USA.

As the final timers were cleared, San Diego Newcomers 2024 closed the book on an action-packed day of tournament play in 2024. From the top-tier duel between Choi and Hernández to the countless individual milestones across the tables, the cubing competition delivered exceptional performances across all four disciplines. Solvers left the arena with fresh personal bests, valuable competitive experience, and strong momentum as they look toward future challenges on the tournament circuit.