# Competitions for kids



## SmallCuber10 (Nov 16, 2021)

Hi,

I'm posting as the mum of a very enthusiastic 10 year old cuber. On a 3x3 he has a 23 second PB and an average of around 45 seconds. He's really keen to go to some competitions, but we're new to cubing and not sure how it works. Are there specific events for children? Can he take part in standard events? Does anyone know of clubs or meets which he might be able to join? We're in Bristol, UK.

Thanks in advance for help and advice!


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## GenTheThief (Nov 16, 2021)

Hi, welcome to the forums!

The governing body that officiates competitions is the World Cube Association. You can go on their website and check the competitions tab to see if there are any comps near you. Due to the pandemic, competitions were largely put to a halt but they've been slowly coming back. It looks like the only competition in the UK for the next couple months is Wakefield Open 2022. I don't know if that's prohibitively far for you to travel. In 2019, it looks like there were two competitions relatively close in Weston-super-Mare and Oakdale, so hopefully once competitions come back similarly located competitions will be available.

Across the entire WCA, there are 17 official events that can be hosted at a competition, but it's up to the organizers to decide which ones they want to host. There are no age brackets, so he would be competing with everyone else. The age range of most competitors is _roughly_ 10-20, although you usually have at least a few parents and younger children competing. For most events, there are time limits and cutoff times to make sure that the competition can stay on track. Usually for 3x3 the time limit is 10 minutes for a single solve so he should be well within that.

There are a list of official regulations that he (and every competitor) should be familiar with when competing. I don't want to prioritize them since they are all important, but you'll want to absolutely make sure that you're familiar with Articles 2, 3, 5, 10, 11, A, and Y. It might seem like a lot but the regulations are intentionally written to be easily readable and understandable. There are also guidelines which can help clarify specific situations as well as a general FAQ for more WCA related things. If you have other niche questions about the regulations there's a thread here for just that as well where both other cubers and official delegates can help answer questions.


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## CubeRed (Nov 17, 2021)

There is also this video that helped me a lot. Always glad to help!!


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## EngiNerdBrian (Nov 17, 2021)

Hello and welcome! By and large the cubing community is dominated by children. Anyone in the mid to late twenties might as well be a boomer as far as the median cubing age is concerned. Competitions are a safe and fun place for kids to meet fellow "cubers", gain a sense of community, make friends, and normalize their interest in this rather odd/niche/fringe hobby. 

There are not specific events for children but anyone is welcome to compete in any event. The WCA links above are a great place to start to find a competition in your area. 

I'm mostly posting to emphasize that cubing competitions are definitely an age appropriate event for a 10 year old.


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## Tabe (Nov 17, 2021)

SmallCuber10 said:


> Hi,
> 
> I'm posting as the mum of a very enthusiastic 10 year old cuber. On a 3x3 he has a 23 second PB and an average of around 45 seconds. He's really keen to go to some competitions, but we're new to cubing and not sure how it works. Are there specific events for children? Can he take part in standard events? Does anyone know of clubs or meets which he might be able to join? We're in Bristol, UK.
> 
> Thanks in advance for help and advice!


The WCA, the organizing body mentioned up above, specifically forbids age requirements for competitions. That said, the vast majority of competitors are under 16. Competitions are a safe and welcoming place for all ages and all ages mix and socialize. At my last comp, at my two tables we had people from 11 - 49 years old all talking, joking, and cubing together. In general, parents will drop their kid at a table with other cubes and then go sit in the audience area where they can keep an eye on things. 

There are cubing groups and get-togethers all over the world. I suggest looking for groups on Facebook for cubes in your area. Don't see one? Create one! There are also groups for parents of cubes which you might find useful for yourself. 

p.s. To sign up for competitions, your son needs to have an account on the WCA site. Then there will be registration instructions on the page for the competition itself.


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## GenTheThief (Nov 17, 2021)

CubeRed said:


> There is also this video that helped me a lot. Always glad to help!!


Edit: wait I didn't realize that you also linked the video in your post

This is a video tutorial from 2015 that shows what the competition is like. I don't know exactly which regulations have changed since then, but it will still be a relatively good idea of what solving at a normal competition is like.






Of course, with the pandemic, there are going to be situational precautions in place. For example, depending on how many people there are, you may be able to stay at the solving station for all 5 solves instead of going back to the waiting area. If you're really concerned about knowing what the exact procedures are then you can reach out to the organizer and delegate to see what precautions will be in place.


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## KaleidoscopeCubed (Nov 17, 2021)

I've never been to a competition myself (I got into cubing literally as lockdown was starting). But you're question reminded me of videos Tingman has where he goes to completions with his 10 year old daughter. 






Of course this is in Australia, but I don't think that the culture would be particularly different in the UK, and you can really see that it's very kid friendly.


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## SmallCuber10 (Nov 17, 2021)

Thank you so much everyone for the really helpful and reassuring replies. Cubing sounds like a very kid friendly community. We will definitely watch those videos. Wakefield might be a bit far but fingers crossed others will be confirmed soon. I'm looking forward to our first event!


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## abunickabhi (Nov 18, 2021)

SmallCuber10 said:


> Hi,
> 
> I'm posting as the mum of a very enthusiastic 10 year old cuber. On a 3x3 he has a 23 second PB and an average of around 45 seconds. He's really keen to go to some competitions, but we're new to cubing and not sure how it works. Are there specific events for children? Can he take part in standard events? Does anyone know of clubs or meets which he might be able to join? We're in Bristol, UK.
> 
> Thanks in advance for help and advice!


Hi, 

good to hear about your kid's interest. All the best for his cubing journey. Hope more comps get declared in UK.


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## Ben Whitmore (Nov 18, 2021)

SmallCuber10 said:


> Thank you so much everyone for the really helpful and reassuring replies. Cubing sounds like a very kid friendly community. We will definitely watch those videos. Wakefield might be a bit far but fingers crossed others will be confirmed soon. I'm looking forward to our first event!


Just a warning that if you do decide you want to go, there is no on-the-day registration and the online registration will probably fill up extremely quickly. I wouldn't be surprised if it was completely full within 5 minutes, maybe even less. The same might be true for future competitions too so make sure you are ready to register immediately when the registration opens


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## AkashSreedharan (Nov 22, 2021)

Yes, in cubing there are no age nor gender groups. I participated in my first(and only competition) when I was ten too. Good luck to your son if he does go to a competition. It may seem intimidating at first, but relax and feel free to talk to others. My regrets of my first competition are being too reserved, and letting the nerves get to me.


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## Kedin drysdale (Nov 22, 2021)

SmallCuber10 said:


> Hi,
> 
> I'm posting as the mum of a very enthusiastic 10 year old cuber. On a 3x3 he has a 23 second PB and an average of around 45 seconds. He's really keen to go to some competitions, but we're new to cubing and not sure how it works. Are there specific events for children? Can he take part in standard events? Does anyone know of clubs or meets which he might be able to join? We're in Bristol, UK.
> 
> Thanks in advance for help and advice!


https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/competitions this website should help your questions


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