Edinburgh Winter 2025
- Date
- Jan 11 - 12, 2025
- City
- Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Venue
Meadowbank Sports Centre
- Address
- London Road, Edinburgh, EH7 6AE
- Details
Hall 2, Second floor, follow the signs
- Contact
- Organization team
- Organizers
- Eleanor Sinnott and UK Cube Association
- WCA Delegates
- Adam Leyton, Eleanor Sinnott, Oliver Wheat, Ryan Eckersley, and Scott Hunter
- Download all the competition's details as PDF .
- Information
If you are a new competitor, please make sure to read all the information in the FAQ and the Important Information tabs before registering. All competitors should be familiar with the information in these tabs.
- Events
- Main event
- Competitor limit
- 190
- Number of times bookmarked
- 33
- Registration period
-
Online registration opened and will close .
- Registration requirements
-
Create a WCA account here if you don't have one.
If this is not your first competition, associate your WCA ID to your WCA account here.
Register for this competition here.
There is a competitor limit of 190 competitors.
The base registration fee for this competition is £30 (British Pound).
The registration fee has to be paid through Stripe here once registered.
If your registration is cancelled before you will be refunded 100% of your registration fee.
Registrants on the waiting list may be accepted onto the competitor list until .
If you are a registered competitor you may change your registered events until on the Register tab.
No on the spot registrations will be accepted.
Any spectator can attend for free.
Make sure to register and pay for the competition to be accepted. We will not accept any registrations at the competition.
Once you have been accepted, you will receive a confirmation email. If registration is full by the time you pay then you will not receive this confirmation email and you will be on the waiting list. If you do not make the competitor list by the limit date for refunds (specified above), then you will be refunded 100% of your registration fee. You may contact us to ask for your current position on the waiting list.
If you can no longer attend, let us know as soon as possible through the contact link on the General Info page. We often have waiting lists so letting us know you cannot attend allows us to add another person to the competition.
If you would like to change events, you can do so on the register page by simply reselecting your events list, and clicking "Update Registration".
Registration changes and deletions will only be processed after a request through the contact form. We will not accept any changes to registrations via any other platform.
If you have any problems check out the FAQ, or feel free to contact us.
All competitions in the UK are run by the UKCA with the help of our many organisers from all over the country. We have organised over 60 competitions in the UK and have also helped run competitions over in Ireland to help their community grow. Our delegates have over 300 combined competitions of experience with many more to come.
Make sure to follow our social media pages to keep up to date with the latest content and media!
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How do I register?
A: First you need to make sure you have created a WCA account. You can do this by going to the sign-up page and creating an account. Once you have created the account and confirmed your email address, follow the menu bar to the Register page and follow the instructions fully and carefully.
Q: Why am I not on the registration list yet?
A: Please make sure that you have followed the instructions listed on the Register page. You could also be on the waiting list. The competitor limit can be found on the General Info page, and you can see the number on accepted competitors on the Competitors page also on the menu. If you have done everything correctly and the competition is not full then just be patient. We have to manually approve registrations and the organisers aren't available all the time. If you believe you have followed the steps correctly but still are not on the registration list after 2-3 days, then feel free to email us at the contact link on the General Info page. You can contact us at any time to check your place on the waiting list as well.
Q: I am no longer able to attend, what do I do?
A: The first thing you need to do is tell us as soon as you know via the contact link on the General Info page. Competitions generally fill up quite quickly and letting us know that you can't attend means we can add someone from the waiting list.
Q: If I do not attend do I get a refund?
A: If you inform us you are no longer attending before the limit date for refunds on the General Info page then you will receive a full refund. If this time has passed then you will receive no refund.
Q: How fast do I have to be to compete?
A: We recommend that you check out the Events and Schedule tabs - if you can make the time limit for the events you want to compete in, then you're fast enough! Loads of people come to competitions just to beat their own personal bests, and meet likeminded people, with no intention of winning or even making it past the first round.
Q: Are there different age categories?
A: All competitors compete on the same level and all ages are welcome. In general most are aged 10-20 but we have plenty of regulars who are older or younger than this!
Q: Do I use my own cubes to compete?
A: Yes! Make sure to bring cubes for all events you are competing in and look after them, you don't want them to go missing.
Q: Am I allowed to bring a guest?
A: Yes, you are allowed to bring as many guests as you please. Space in the venue may be restricted during busy times so please be sensible.
Q: Can I come only to spectate?
A: Yes! However, the venue is usually quite busy during the morning, so if you are just coming to spectate please come in the afternoon.
Q: I'm a parent, what can I do to get involved?
A: If you're looking for something to do then you can certainly help out with the running and judging! We pretty much always need help with this and they are really easy procedures to follow. You can come to the introduction to competing where we go through all of it there, and there is a tutorial on the Important Information tab as well. Running is also great for step count and requires zero knowledge of cubing if you're worried about that!
Q: When do I arrive at the competition?
A: If you are a new competitor, we highly recommend that you show up for the introduction to competing which is held as the first thing on both days. Otherwise, we recommend you turn up at least 15 minutes before your first event, you can check when this is on the Schedule tab. This will give you enough time to register, find a seat, and warm-up.
Q: Do I have to be there on both days?
A: No, if you're only competing events on one of the days, you don't have to turn up for the other day. You can see what days your events are on on the Schedule tab. If you are assigned tasks (running/judging/scrambling) on a day you're not competing on, do not worry about missing them.
Q: What do I do when I arrive?
A: The first thing you do when you arrive is find the registration desk if registration is open. If you arrive before registration opens, we will make an announcement as to when it does open. If there is nobody present at the registration desk then find a staff member and we will make sure to register you.
Q: When can I leave the competition?
A: You are more than welcome to leave whenever you want. If you have no more events left then you are not required to stay.
Q: How do I find results?
A: All the results will be found on this page a couple of days after the competition, once they have all been checked and uploaded. If you are looking for live results, in the Menu Bar at the top go to Results ≫ WCA Live.
New Competitors
If you are a new competitor, it is important that you are familiar with the Regulations. The regulations are very long and are quite a lot to take in so don't worry if you don't remember it all! Because of this, we have a video that explains the competing procedure which we recommend to watch before attending: Competing Tutorial. We will also be holding a tutorial for new competitors which we recommend you attend as well.
New competitors must bring some form of ID to show at the competition to confirm the name, the country they wish to compete for, and the date of birth registered with. The usual items of ID that people bring are Passports, Birth Certificates, Driver's Licenses, etc. As long as it has your name, date of birth, and country, then it will be fine.
If you have any questions, we recommend that you check the FAQ in case it has been asked before. But you are more than welcome to contact us at the link on the General Info page. We also recommend you check out the UKCA tab to sign up to our mailing list for announcements of future competitions, among other things.
Information for All Competitors
- Schedule Changes: Please note that the schedule is subject to change up until the Wednesday before the competition, when we will know exactly how many people are competing in each event. These should be only minor changes and may involve increasing the number of rounds for some events!
- Please help judge! As a competitor, your judging assignments are the absolute minimum you should be doing to help out. As second rounds, third rounds and finals have no assigned judges, we really need people to help out whenever available for these. If you are directly asked to judge, please go and judge for the remainder of the round in progress. If you do not comply then we are within our rights to disqualify you from the competition as per Regulation 1e2. If you're a parent you can also get involved with running and juging, it's really easy! We will have a judging tutorial in the mornings as well, which will run through the process and will be tailored towards parents who want to get involved.
- Please note that Carbon-Fiber puzzles are not permitted, and please make sure your cube complies with logo regulations!
- When you are competing and have handed in your puzzle, please make sure to be waiting in the designated area so that judges and runners do not have to come searching for you.
- Please DO NOT talk about the scrambles or your solutions whilst the round is in progress as per Regulation 2g3.
- During blindfolded events, please stay silent within the venue. These events require a high amount of concentration and any noise can be distracting. We will announce when the silence will begin and when you may talk within the venue again.
- No flash photography under any circumstance within the venue. It is extremely distracting for competitors.
- If you are a spectator, please stay 1.5m away from competitors at all times as per Regulation 7b. If you are filming someone competing, please keep out of the competitor area.
- Please treat the venue with respect, put all of your rubbish in bins, black bin bags, or take it home with you and keep your area tidy.
- There are thousands of puzzles at these events, make sure to keep yours together so you don't lose them! Keeping them in a bag and looking after it at all times is recommended. If you do lose a puzzle, please contact us at the link on the General Info page, it is likely that someone has handed it in to us.
- We will be taking videos and photographs of the competition and the environment for our social media pages and website. By attending the competition as a competitor or a guest, you are accepting that you may be filmed or photographed for these purposes.
Venue
The venue is Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh.
The building is white with ‘MEADOWBANK THE CITY OF EDINBURGH COUNCIL’ in big text. You’ll know if you’re in the right place because it is hard to miss!
Travel
Car: The venue’s address is Meadowbank Sports Centre, London Road, Edinburgh EH7 6AE.
The venue has 97 customer car park spaces.
The alternative parking is around the venue side street.
Train: The nearest train station is Edinburgh Waverley which is a major station and has direct trains across the country. The venue is a 30 minute walk from the station however it is a 10 minutes bus ride with buses running between Princes Street (just outside the station) and Meadowbank Stadium incredibly frequently.
Plane: The closest airport is Edinburgh Airport at only 10 miles away. To get to the venue from the airport, it is recommended to catch an airport bus such as the 100 Airlink into the city centre, then catching one of the many buses that runs between the city centre and Meadowbank.
Coach: Coaches to Edinburgh will stop at Edinburgh bus station. To get to the venue from here, simply walk to Princes Street and catch one of the many buses to Meadowbank Stadium.
Bus: There are buses every few minutes between Princes Street (central Edinburgh by the station) and Meadowbank Stadium: the 26, 44, 45, 124, and X7. Meadowbank Stadium bus stop is directly outside the venue, with Meadowbank House bus stop just a few minutes down the road. This journey takes approximately 10 minutes.
Accommodation
Nearby chain hotels are listed below. It is recommended to stay in the city centre where there are dozens of hotels less than 15 minutes away by bus at a variety of price points.
This competition will be sponsored by Speedcubing.org!
They are kindly setting up a cube store to sell their puzzles throughout the event!
Here's what the owner, Daniel Evans, had to say:
I started speedcubing.org in its current form in 2019, I had previously sold cubes to my school cubing club and on a few market stalls in my local area. speedcubing.org has since grown to become one of the UKs largest speedcube stores aiming to provide the cubing community with high quality speedcubes at reasonable prices and with fast customer service. I am a competitive speedcuber so I understand the needs of speedcubers and can give recommendations accordingly, I strive to get new cubes in stock quickly and I try them for myself so I can develop an opinion on each one. I also have a range of helpful written instructions and videos on how to improve, and for those wanting extra support I do even offer speedcubing tuition
Each event is run in groups, depending on how many people are competing in the event depends on how many groups there are. We call each group up one at a time in order to complete their solves during the scheduled time for the round. We have software that automatically picks what groups you are in, the judges, and who scrambles for each group. This is the minimum amount you should be helping out as it only is for first rounds. We always appreciate extra help!
Please note down which groups you are competing and scrambling in before arriving at the competition!
Groups
Time limit
If you reach the time limit during your solve, the judge will stop you and your result will be DNF (see Regulation A1a4).
A cumulative time limit may be enforced (see Regulation A1a2).
Cutoff
The result to beat to proceed to the second phase of a cutoff round (see Regulation 9g).
Format
The format describes how to determine the ranking of competitors based on their results. The list of allowed formats per event is described in Regulation 9b. See Regulation 9f for a description of each format.