Vilnius Amanita 2023

Inside the competition hall at Vilniaus Antakalnio progimnazija, Mantas Urbanavičius delivered an extraordinary showing by capturing seven titles over a single weekend. Across 12 events and 25 rounds on May 27 and May 28, the 35 competitors in Vilnius, Lithuania experienced non-stop action on the tables. The headline 3x3 results culminated in Urbanavičius securing top honours with a crisp 7.57 winning average and a best single solve of 5.98 seconds, outperforming 31 other solvers in the premier discipline.

The venue at Vilniaus Antakalnio progimnazija provided a vibrant hub for this speedcubing meeting. Solvers, judges, and delegates filled the hall across two packed days of scheduled rounds. Speed cubing in the Lithuanian capital brought together regional talent, with competitors from Lithuania and Latvia contesting every podium. Over the course of the gathering, Lithuanian competitors captured 30 podium positions, while visiting Latvian solvers secured 9 top-three placements.

Beyond the standard Rubik's Cube final, Urbanavičius demonstrated mastery across puzzles of every size. He took first place in 4x4x4 Cube with a 29.08 average, finished the 5x5x5 Cube final with a 57.16 average, and swept the big cube categories with averages of 1:43.44 on 6x6x6 Cube and 2:57.16 on 7x7x7 Cube. He also claimed the Megaminx title in 50.44 seconds and topped 3x3x3 One-Handed with an 11.44 mark, completing a remarkable seven-event sweep during the competition.

The 2x2x2 Cube competition brought intense speed across three fast rounds of 28 competitors, where Vilius Ribinskas secured victory with an average of 2.92 seconds after posting a 2.23 best single. Ribinskas also claimed first place in Clock with an 8.50 average, narrowly edging out Titas Karvelis at 8.58 and Mikas Motiejuitis at 9.35. In the Pyraminx event, Motiejuitis secured top honours with a 3.82 winning average, holding off Latvia's Rūdolfs Vīnkalns and Roberts Dreijers in a tightly contested final.

Away from the top steps of the podium, numerous competitors delivered massive personal breakthroughs across the weekend. Arminas Cijunaitis took on 10 events, making a first ever attempt at 6x6x6 Cube with 3:30.13 and Clock with 14.50 while dropping his Pyraminx personal best by 56.7 percent to 6.98 seconds. Augustas Mėčius entered 10 disciplines, posting a 54.1 percent improvement in 3x3x3 One-Handed down to 32.91 seconds, a 26.3 percent improvement in 4x4x4 Cube to 52.61 seconds, and an 18.60 clock debut. Marks Fridmans logged a 45 percent drop in 3x3x3 One-Handed to 23.42 seconds and logged first attempts in Pyraminx and 2x2x2 Cube, while Augustine Petit Guiot lowered their Pyraminx mark by 36 percent to 16.71 seconds, cut 3x3x3 Cube to 38.53 seconds, and completed their first 4x4x4 Cube attempt in 3:10.00.

Other competitors also made remarkable gains throughout the program. Agata Verkovskaja took on 10 events, cutting her 6x6x6 Cube best by 29 percent to 4:12.60, improving Clock by 28.2 percent to 17.70 seconds, and registering a 53.48 one-handed debut. Vakaris Kupetis made a first Pyraminx attempt of 8.80 seconds while lowering his 2x2x2 Cube best by 18.4 percent to 5.06 seconds. Kipras Kandrotas took eighth in Pyraminx with an 18.4 percent personal best of 5.28 seconds and logged a 36.74 initial 3x3x3 mark. Kristupas Kasperavičius improved his 2x2x2 mark by 20.7 percent down to 5.47 seconds and dropped 18.5 percent off his 3x3x3 best to register 19.73 seconds.

The memory events tested concentration in the main hall. In 3x3x3 Blindfolded, Roberts Dreijers of Latvia claimed victory with a single time of 1:32.68, edging out Ribinskas at 1:34.58 and Danielius Riuka at 3:35.08. Riuka turned the tables in the grueling 3x3x3 Multi-Blind event, taking the victory with 4 out of 5 cubes solved within a time limit of 43 minutes and 23 seconds.

The 3x3x3 Cube podium saw Urbanavičius joined by Žygimantas Pilipas, who took second place with an 8.79 average, and Danielius Riuka, who secured third with 9.75 seconds. The 3x3x3 One-Handed podium featured Tomas Jankauskas in second with 16.81 and Rūdolfs Vīnkalns in third with 17.08. In 4x4x4 Cube, Ribinskas earned second place with 37.68 seconds, closely followed by Jankauskas with 37.77 seconds. In Megaminx, Vīnkalns placed second in 53.39 seconds and Viltė Klioštoraitytė finished third in 1:02.88.

The two-day cubing competition concluded with memorable performances across the full spectrum of puzzles. Vilnius Amanita 2023 demonstrated the depth of the Baltic speedcubing community, setting a strong benchmark for every participant heading into the remainder of the 2023 season. From seasoned event winners to competitors stepping onto the floor for their first official rounds, this WCA competition provided high quality racing from start to finish.