Stevenage November 2023

The tables at The Forum were filled from wall to wall as timers blinked under the arena lights. Across two full days, the venue hummed with the constant rhythmic turning of plastic layers, the snap of puzzle resets, and the quiet focus of competitors preparing their solves. As late autumn settled across Hertfordshire, the gathering marked a crucial late-calendar stop in the 2023 speedcubing circuit. For many in attendance, the weekend offered an ideal opportunity to test months of training against a deep field before the season drew toward its conclusion.

Held across November 25 to November 26, Stevenage November 2023 brought together 191 competitors to take part in 20 rounds of action across nine different disciplines. The programme spanned everything from lightning-fast sprints on smaller puzzles to complex multi-layer challenges and blindfolded solving. With qualifying marks on the line and positions at a premium in the late stages of the competitive year, the WCA competition drew an ambitious mix of established contenders and rising talents to Stevenage, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom.

The classic Rubik's Cube drew a massive lineup of 178 entrants across four demanding rounds. When the decisive final arrived, James Alonso produced a steady, commanding set of solves to capture first place with an average of 7.38 seconds, having also posted the round's best single at 5.97. Nicholas Archer applied unrelenting pressure to take second place with a 7.50 average, while Danny Morgan rounded out the podium in third with an 8.07 average. The final 3x3 results underlined the exceptional depth present at the top of the British ranking tables.

Alonso was not done with a single title, delivering another victory in the 2x2x2 Cube by securing a winning average of 1.63 seconds alongside a best single of 1.45. Max Tully claimed second place with a mark of 1.86, narrowly holding off Archer, who took third on 1.92. Archer, however, turned his own double-gold performance elsewhere on the schedule. He topped a 107-player field in the 4x4x4 Cube with a 32.17 winning average to edge out Morgan's 32.24 and Cham J. Chambers at 32.51. Archer then added the 3x3x3 One-Handed crown, finishing on a 10.79 average ahead of Louis de Mendonca at 12.12 and Jaye Sloan at 16.90.

Beyond the battle for podium hardware, the weekend served as a launchpad for major personal breakthroughs. Jacob Payne delivered one of the steepest drops of the tournament, lowering his Clock personal best to 6.32 seconds, an improvement of 71.1 percent over his prior mark of 21.87, while also logging a 1.10 in 2x2x2 Cube. Preston Mee similarly took a massive step forward, cutting his Clock best by 58.5 percent down to 14.89 seconds. Rayan Islam tackled eight events, trying the 3x3x3 Blindfolded discipline for the first time with a 3:16.93 while chopping his 2x2x2 Cube best down by 39.1 percent to 1.26. Jacob Waldner carved 44 percent off his 3x3x3 Cube standard to post a 12.40.

The event expansions continued across the roster as competitors widened their repertoires at this cubing competition. Matas Pabreza entered seven categories, achieving a 6th-place finish in Clock and recording his first official 5x5x5 Cube attempt at 1:44.52 alongside a 26.75 personal best in 3x3x3 One-Handed. Alex Trimikliniotis took on the grueling 7x7x7 Cube for the first time, finishing in 4:44.41 while taking 11th in 2x2x2 Cube. Max Philpott entered all nine scheduled events, making maiden appearances in Clock with 34.93 and One-Handed with 54.56, while Jai Willink logged a first Clock time of 10.43 and improved his 2x2x2 Cube mark by 39.6 percent to 2.20.

The specialised disciplines provided plenty of technical highlights throughout Sunday's finals. Cham J. Chambers captured the Clock title with a winning average of 4.90 seconds, leading Morgan at 5.22 and Oscar Coleman Green at 5.95. Morgan found his own victory in the 5x5x5 Cube, averaging 55.21 seconds to finish clear of Daniel Evans on 1:00.48 and Chambers on 1:01.11. Evans had already showcased his command of the bigger layers by winning the 7x7x7 Cube with an average of 2:42.17, while Ariel Benchetrit dominated Skewb with an average of 2.55 seconds.

In the memory-intensive 3x3x3 Blindfolded event, Jaye Sloan paced the 33-competitor field to win with an average of 24.13 seconds and a sharp single of 18.92, finishing ahead of Thomas Patterson on 42.78 and Daniel Partridge on 40.15. Across every event on offer, competitors from the United Kingdom swept all 27 podium positions. For the hundreds of participants who packed The Forum, Stevenage November 2023 delivered a weekend of frantic speed cubing action that provided a definitive snapshot of late-season form.