Speedcubes competition to celebrate Rubik's 40th
To celebrate four decades of the Rubik's Cube there have been over 443 official cube competitions happening around the world (from Ankara to Zonhoven). Speedcubes has now added South Africa to that list and will host two official competitions, first in Johannesburg at the Sci-Bono Discovery Centre on Sunday 23 November (9am to 5pm) and then at the Science Centre in Cape Town on Sunday, 30 November (9am to 5pm). There is R20,000 worth of prize money up-for-grabs, including for the youngest and oldest competitor at each event.
Speedcubes in partnership with Cybersmart, SACAP (The South African College of Applied Psychology), 10 X Investments and Eighty20 host the South African events.
Feliks Zemdegs from Melbourne and Mats Valk from Amsterdam are the current Speedcubes' world champions and are travelling to South Africa to compete at the Johannesburg and Cape Town events. Zemdegs currently holds the world record for solving the cube with an average time of 6.54 seconds and Valk holds the record for the fastest single time of 5.55 seconds. Both are passionate about their craft and watching them 'perform' will be one of the highlights for the two competitions.
Entries have opened and anyone can enter the competition. Don't know how to solve the cube? Not to worry, there are a few weeks left to brush up on your skills. "I have taught hundreds of people, the youngest aged five," says Amnon Melzer from Speedcubes. "It is wonderful to watch the pure delight of children who master a seemingly impossible task with a bit of helpful guidance and some patient perseverance." In addition, as an added bonus learning to solve the cube can has a positive effect on improving memory, attention, thinking skills and problem solving.
Since the launch of the original Rubik's, versions that are more complex have been invented. "We have over 40 different cubes aside from the standard 3x3 cube. The most complex cube is the 11x11, which takes at least half an hour to solve, if you know what you are doing," says Kim Katz from Speedcubes. For those that love the standard 3x3, here are some of the more interesting stats: world record for solving the cube with feet is 25.14 seconds; one-handed is 9.03 seconds and blindfolded is 23.19 seconds.
Join the world champions to share the joy and competitiveness of cubing. The events are about each participant reaching their personal best and having their time recorded with the World Cube Association. The Cape Town Science Centre and Sci-Bono Discovery Centre will be waiving entrance fees to the centres for the day to promote the learning made possible by engaging with a timeless toy.
For more information, go to www.speedcubes.co.za.
