UIUC Fall 2023

Sixty-two competitors gathered inside the Illini Union on December 9, 2023, turning a single Saturday into a bustling showcase of mechanical precision and concentration. For several participants in Urbana, Illinois, USA, the gathering marked their introduction to the World Cube Association circuit, stepping up to the timing stations for the very first time. Across 11 total rounds spanning five official disciplines, UIUC Fall 2023 gave both seasoned veterans and brand-new cubers an intense arena to test their dexterity against the clock.

Stepping into an official cubing competition brings a distinct rhythm, from navigating inspection time under the eye of a judge to resetting the timer between attempts. Four competitors took their first official steps at this WCA competition, instantly expanding their horizons across multiple puzzles. Jack Kotheimer jumped straight into three separate disciplines on debut, putting up a 15.96 in the 3x3x3 Cube, a 4.08 in the 2x2x2 Cube, and completing a 5x5x5 Cube solve in 1:53.68. Katherine Chiang also made her debut across three events, turning in an impressive 9.89 single on the traditional 3x3x3 Cube alongside a 3.92 mark in the 2x2x2 Cube and a 16th-place finish in Megaminx.

Fellow debutant Jeffrey Huang completed a versatile program of three events, logging a 21.16 in the 3x3x3 Cube, a 6.28 in the 2x2x2 Cube, and a 3:54.00 single on the 5x5x5 Cube. Myles Whisler embraced a heavy workload right out of the gate by tackling four events, recording an official 31.99 in the 3x3x3 Cube, a 10.00 in the 2x2x2 Cube, and taking 18th place in Megaminx. The initial experience of official speed cubing provided these first-timers with benchmark times that will serve as reference points for future tournaments.

The broader field delivered remarkable leaps on the scorecards, highlighted by massive personal improvements across different disciplines. Praval Telagi carved out a massive step forward on the classic Rubik's Cube, dropping their personal best to 10.00 seconds, which was 61.3 percent faster than their previous mark of 25.84, while also lowering their 2x2x2 Cube personal best to 4.08. Kenneth Norton entered four events and advanced his personal bests significantly, securing seventh place in Megaminx with a debut time of 1:29.11, while taking his 2x2x2 mark down 43.8 percent to 3.13 and improving his 5x5x5 time to 3:19.40. Sander Garcia-Stam chopped 37.2 percent off his previous 5x5x5 best with a new 1:40.75 single and made his first Megaminx attempt in 1:54.14.

Other returning solvers found breakthrough moments across the schedule. Noah Reardon took on four events, earning ninth place in Megaminx with a first attempt of 1:52.43, tackling the 5x5x5 Cube for the first time in 2:36.65, and dropping his 3x3x3 single by 17.4 percent to 10.90. Parsa Rouhi registered a 34.2 percent drop on the 2x2x2 Cube with a 3.14 single while recording a first Megaminx attempt of 2:45.38. Jeffrey Kochan achieved a 25.4 percent drop in the 5x5x5 Cube to reach 1:59.13, while Isaac McLain registered a 20.4 percent improvement in the 3x3x3 Cube to 19.46 alongside a first 5x5x5 attempt of 4:52.77. Finn Durso logged an opening 5x5x5 single of 2:36.72 while cutting his 2x2x2 single to 3.95 and his 3x3x3 best to 10.55.

At the sharp end of the main bracket, the 3x3 results culminated in a strong performance by Luigi Soriano. Soriano captured first place in the 3x3x3 Cube final with a winning average of 7.64, holding off Ellery Dillon who posted an 8.14 average for second place, and Akshaansh Chilakapati who took third with an 8.82 average. Soriano recorded the best single of the entire 60-person event with a 7.11 effort during the rounds, leading the field through three stages of competition.

Soriano remained dominant across multiple disciplines throughout the day. In the 2x2x2 Cube, Soriano secured the title with a 1.75 winning average, finishing ahead of Ellery Dillon in second at 2.48 and Amos Lyons in third at 3.61. Soriano also topped the podium in the twelve-sided Megaminx event, capturing victory with a 53.57 average and a 46.13 single, edging out Chilakapati who placed second with a 53.98 average, while August Lancaster secured third with a 1:08.97 average.

The larger puzzles and specialized events offered compelling battles at the top. Sebastian Morber captured the 5x5x5 Cube championship with a winning average of 1:04.47 and the fastest single of the contest at 59.48, besting Chilakapati in second at 1:06.53 and Soriano in third at 1:06.79. In the 3x3x3 Blindfolded discipline, which demands complete memorization before donning a blindfold, Chilakapati clinched first place with a 2:10.60 average and a best single of 1:17.95, while Kit Clement took second with a 1:24.13 single and Layne VanSiegel finished third with 1:26.57.

Across the five events contested at UIUC Fall 2023, solvers representing the USA earned 11 podium spots, while India claimed four podium positions. From newcomers recording their opening official times to the top tier battling through intense multi-round finals, the Urbana tournament brought an eventful day of speedcubing to a memorable conclusion.