Introducing the Set of Standard Scrambles

Dear WCA Community,

The WCA has experienced unprecedented growth over the last few years. Such growth has been remarkable for the cubing community, but it has not come without challenges. In particular, the size of our database has grown exponentially, leading to massive operational costs in both time, money, and opportunity. Put succinctly, the current trajectory of our database growth no longer matches our capacity.

To ensure that we maintain enough free space in our database for future operations of the WCA, we will no longer allow new scramble sequences to be added to our database. Instead, the WCA is introducing the WCA Set of Standard Scrambles. Every event will have a hand-picked selection of twelve scrambles that are optimally tuned for maximum performance. WCA Delegates will construct scramble sets for use in competitions by randomly selecting five scrambles from the standard set.

Please note important exceptions to the above: 3x3x3, 3x3x3 One-Handed, 3x3x3 Blindfolded, 3x3x3 Multi-Blindfolded, and Fewest Moves will use the same scramble set for maximum space savings. The same will apply for 4x4x4 and 5x5x5 and their blindfolded variants. Additionally, Clock will only have two scrambles in its scramble set, because even a broken Clock is right twice a day.

Naturally, we can’t leave such an important component of speedcubing up to chance. That’s where we need your help: the WCA will be accepting submissions for scrambles to use in the standard set. The speedcubing community will vote on their favorites, and the twelve highest rated scrambles for each event will be inducted into the Set of Standard Scrambles forever. To ensure scramble secrecy, those who are lucky enough to have their scrambles selected will no longer be allowed to compete. However, they will be appointed Honorary Delegate in recognition of their contributions to the WCA.

Please submit your very best scrambles at this Google Form.

We couldn’t be more excited for the efficiency and savings this will bring to the WCA. Current estimates project that this change will save over 8 megabytes of storage space over the next 10 years.

We look forward to seeing your scrambles! May the odds be ever in your favor.

Sincerely,
The WCA Board of Directors

Source:: worldcubeassociation

Call for Applicants – WCA Competition Announcement Team Members (March 2025)

The WCA Competition Announcement Team (WCAT) is seeking new members! The application is open to any community member, but please review the expected tasks and qualities.

What does the WCAT do?

The official rights and duties of the WCAT are documented in WCA Motion 10.2024.2.

The tasks of a WCAT member include:

  • Review and announce competitions around the world on a daily basis with accuracy and attention to detail.
  • Handle change requests to competitions.
  • Engage in frequent discussions and voting within the Team.
  • Make and communicate changes to the WCA Competition Requirements Policy.

Requirements
Applicants are expected to possess the following qualities:

  • Proactive personality, detail-oriented, and solution-oriented mindset.
  • Fluency in English.
  • Availability on-call throughout the day to engage in time-sensitive discussions
  • Availability for about 30 minutes, several times per week to work on competition announcements or changes.
  • Good familiarity with the WCA Competition Requirements Policy (WCRP) and the WCA competition organizer role.
  • Communication and/or policy-writing skills are not required but are strongly encouraged.
  • Be at least 16 years of age as of April 5th, 2025.

How to apply
Candidacy documents must be in PDF format, and must include:

  • A brief personal introduction.
  • Summary of activities done for the WCA.
  • A concrete overview on how expected qualities are to be fulfilled.
  • (Optional) Indicate whether you would like to join our documentation sub-team. This team works on updates to the WCA Competition Requirements Policy and other public information about WCAT policies.
  • (Optional) Qualities and qualifications you find relevant that are not listed above.

The application period is open for applicants to submit their application document from now until April 5th, 2025 23:59 UTC to Zeke Mackay (zmackay@worldcubeassociation.org).

Source:: worldcubeassociation

Call for Applications – WCA Appeals Committee Members (March 2025)

Dear WCA Community,

The WCA Appeals Committee (WAC) is looking for new members! Interested community members of all backgrounds are encouraged to apply. Due to the nature of the WAC’s work, the following requirements apply:

  • Candidates must have served a period of at least 12 consecutive months as a WCA Volunteer (this does not have to be a current position).
  • Candidates must not be a serving member of the WCA Board, the WCA Regulations Committee, or the WCA Integrity Committee (or must be willing to relinquish the role upon appointment to this role).

What does the WAC do?

The official rights and duties of the WAC are documented in WCA Motion 10.2025.4 – Appeals Committee. The WCA Appeals Committee is a small team that handles appeals made by members of the WCA affected by a decision made by either the WCA Integrity Committee (WIC) or the WCA Regulations Committee (WRC).

Members of the WAC examine the provided evidence and determine whether the grounds for an appeal are valid or not. Then, a thorough analysis of the original committee’s decision is made to reach a final verdict which can overturn or uphold the decision.

Requirements and expectations

The qualities and requirements expected of candidates are:

  • At least 16 years of age as of April 1st, 2025.
  • Availability throughout the week – expected time commitment of ~3 hours per week.
  • Ability to communicate comfortably in written English.
  • Ability to patiently communicate with people whose first language is not English.
  • Ability to communicate constructively and respectfully, even when you disagree.
  • Familiarity with the WCA Regulations and Guidelines, though it is not necessary nor expected that applicants have a perfect working knowledge.
  • Familiarity with the Code of Conduct and the Code of Ethics.
  • Familiarity with the competition environment.

How to Apply

Candidacy documents must include:

  • A brief personal introduction.
  • Summary of activities done for the WCA and the cubing community.
  • Overview of skills relevant to the role.
  • Motivation for joining the WAC.

Candidacy documents must be in PDF format. The application period is open for candidates to submit their candidacy document from now until April 11th, 2025, 23:59 UTC privately to Rui Reis (rreis@worldcubeassociation.org).

You can expect a reply to confirm whether your application is complete, and may receive a request for an interview with the WAC Leader and up to two other members.

Thank you for your interest in assisting the Appeals Committee and the WCA!

Source:: worldcubeassociation

Senior Delegate Announcement – Latin America (March 2025)

We are happy to announce we have a new Senior Delegate, Guido Dipietro, for Latin America.

Guido was selected by the WCA Board by voting among them, following Section 4 of our Motion about Senior Delegates.

We extend our support and best wishes to Guido in fulfilling his new responsibilities. His term as Senior Delegate started March 4, 2025.

Guido was among 3 applicants we had for the Senior Delegate (Latin America) role. The candidacy documents can be found here.

In addition to Guido, the other applicants were:

  • Ignacio Naval

  • João Vinícius de A. Santos

Source:: worldcubeassociation

Expression of Interest for 2026 WCA Continental Championships (March 2025)

Dear WCA Community,

The WCA Major Championship Team (WMCT), is pleased to be opening an Expression of Interest (EoI) period for the 2026 Asian, African, Oceanic, South American, and North American Championships, following the procedures defined in Motion 22.2024.1..

This EoI period will serve as an opportunity to discuss possibilities about the future of Continental Championships, and will allow the WMCT to have more information about the situation and the interest for these Championships. It is strongly recommended that an EoI is submitted if you intend to lodge a formal bid.

Organizing a WCA Championship of this scale takes a significant amount of time and effort, spanning pre-event preparation, the championship itself, and post-event tasks. It is imperative that the Championship organizers, as well as a substantial proportion of the WCA Delegates in your country are committed to the preparation and the execution of this event. Please also note that applications must be made by a WCA Recognized Regional Organization.

To register your interest please send an email to championships@worldcubeassociation.org before March 31st, 2025, 23:59 UTC with the subject line of “EoI from to bid for Championship 2026”.

This email should include at least:
1. The Regional Organization that would be sending the application
2. Outline of the main organizing team, listing roles and experience
3. Location(s) of the championship
4. Possible venue(s)

Send as much information as you possibly can about the potential championship bid. The WMCT will look to open a formal two month bidding process after the EoI period concludes.

Email the WMCT (championships@worldcubeassociation.org) if you have any questions or need more information.

Source:: worldcubeassociation