About
We are the UK Cube Association and we are a completely volunteer-ran organisation that hosts all cubing competitions in the UK. We are made up of a team of WCA Delegates as well as a team of general volunteers and additional social media and graphic design volunteers. We're passionate about giving people as many opportunities to compete in the UK as we can. We have organised hundreds of competitions up and down the country with many more on the horizon and are always trying to find new locations to make cubing competitions as accessible as possible.
History of the UKCA
The UK was the 15th country to hold a World Cube Association (WCA) competition, UK Open 2006, which was the 68th competition ever held. In the following years there were only a couple of competitions each year until 2012 when the UKCA was founded by Daniel Sheppard, shortly after he became a Delegate. The UKCA was to act as a central location for all WCA competitions in the UK, as well as a general hub for UK cubing. Since founding the UKCA, the number of competitions in the UK has increased significantly and competitions have been held consistently ever since, including the annual UK Championships.
As of March 2025, the UK has held a total of 252 competitions. 5789 competitors have competed under the UK flag and collectively they have broken 833 National Records, 39 Continental Records, and 22 World Records!
In 2019 the UKCA started looking outside of the main Delegates to get some extra help as cubing community has only been getting larger. The UKCA operates under a non-profit basis, where all the workers are volunteers. To see who helps out, check out the team below!
Check out our social media!
The UKCA Team
Directors
Additional Delegates
Additional Delegates
AJ Nicholls - Delegate (South West)
AJ’s first competition was in 2015 and since then he has attended a UK record of 250+ competitions across 24 countries! AJ first organised a competition in 2017 and has been involved in volunteering and organising ever since. In late 2023 he also joined the Delegate ranks.
Ben Ridley - Junior Delegate (East of England)
Ben has been competing since 2016 and is notable for his skills in blindfolded solving, as well as his National Records in the discontinued event 3x3x3 with feet. Ben made a welcome return to regular competitions in 2023, and was appointed as a Delegate.
James Golding - Delegate (South East)
James has been competing since 2017 and began his journey as a Delegate in late 2023. For those of you who love a fun fact, James is the first and only UK competitor to have competed in Malta and even managed to gain a podium finish in the process!
Rich Casey - Delegate (Wales)
Rich began competing in early 2023 and became involved in volunteering at UKCA competitions, and became a Delegate the same year! He has also worked in the WCA Integrity Committee and was the first UK cuber to have competed in Sri Lanka.
Ada Cooke - Junior Delegate (North East)
Ada’s first competition was in 2020, right before the COVID lockdowns. On returning to a considerable amount of competitions in 2024, Ada joined the Delegate team.
Adam Leyton - Junior Delegate (Scotland)
Adam began attending competitions with his son and went on to compete himself in 2024 and joined the Delegate team then too. Feel free to ask him about his Guinness World Records.
Ryan Eckersley - Junior Delegate (Scotland)
Ryan began competing in 2019 and became a Delegate in 2024. His cubing career has included multiple European Records and he is regarded as one of the top BigBLD competitors globally.
Scott Hunter - Junior Delegate (North East)
Scott began competing in 2024 and is one of our new key figures in the North East of England. Hopefully we will see a surge of new competitions in that area in the months and years to come.
Specialist Roles
Ryan Simpson - Graphic Designer
Ryan’s first competition was in 2016 and after leaving university with a BA (Hons) degree in Illustration, he started work as the graphic designer for the UKCA in 2019. In 2020 he found further use for his graphic design skills by joining the WCA Communications Team and was promoted to Senior Member in 2021.
Sarah Pieren - Graphic Designer
Sarah joined the UKCA team in 2024. With a background in graphic design she is here to bring her skills and creativity to the role and help out with all things design. She may be a pro at creating visuals, but don’t ask her to solve a cube in under a minute!
Jason Harley - Social Media
Jason’s first competition was in 2016 and in 2022 he became responsible for overseeing the social media presence of the UKCA (alongside Beary of course).
General Volunteers Team
Jake Brown -
General Volunteer
Jake’s first competition was in 2020, and since then they have become a talented all-rounder with impressive results in many events. They are an Oxford student, a UKCA volunteer and a talented solver. Is there anything Jake can’t do?
Maria Holton -
General Volunteer
Maria's first competition was in 2022 and she quickly became known for the help she offered at competitions. She is studying Maths & Physics at University of Glasgow and was our first ever Scottish UKCA volunteer!
Charlie Butler -
General Volunteer
Charlie’s first competition was at the 2022 UK Championship. The former Secretary of University of Warwick’s cubing society is a welcome face amongst our General Volunteer Team and brings a lot of admin experience with him to help out the UKCA!
Eli Jay -
General Volunteer
Eli began competing in 2014 and has gone on to amass an amazing 50+ National Records and over 20 UK Championship podium finishes. In late 2024 he volunteered some of his time to helping the UKCA as part of our General Volunteer team!
Max Kwok U Sam -
General Volunteer
Max’s first competition was in China in 2018, with a long break before he burst back onto the cubing scene in 2022 in his new home of Scotland. Since his return he has amassed over 200 Macanese National Records and joined the UKCA!
Tyler Gatenby -
General Volunteer
Tyler can often be found at UKCA competitions, whether competing or not! Known for her cheerful Geordie disposition and frequent help at competitions, she is a welcome recent addition to the UKCA Volunteer Team.
- WCA Delegate (South West)
AJ’s first competition was in 2015 and since then he has attended a UK record of 250+ competitions across 24 countries! AJ first organised a competition in 2017 and has been involved in volunteering and organising ever since. In late 2023 he also joined the Delegate ranks.
WCA Profile