Dark horse stumps elite puzzlers with national victory

Katrina Coleman had never competed in a speed puzzling competition before her victory at the weekend’s national championship.

Katrina Coleman, from Devon Hills in Tasmania, shows her form after winning Australia’s first national puzzle championship. Picture: Jay Town

Katrina Coleman, caravan saleswoman and mother of two, had never competed in any of the country’s speed puzzling competitions before her victory at the weekend’s national championship.

When the last of her 500-piece Ravensburger puzzle fell gently into place, the timer stopped at precisely 44 minutes and 34 seconds, with the 52-year-old Tasmanian delivering a spectacular upset to the state champions and achieving a time proximate to some of the world’s fastest puzzlers.

After two years of pandemic cancellations, the inaugural Australian National Jigsaw Puzzle Competition was held at Melbourne’s Williamstown Town Hall, with up to 400 people competing in doubles and 200 participating in singles on 500-piece and 1000-piece puzzles.

While the words speed and adrenaline are rarely associated with jigsaws, for the contestants of the national puzzle championship, it’s as close to an elite competitive sport as it gets.

The Australian National Jigsaw Puzzle Championships at the Williamstown Town Hall. Picture: Jay Town

“When you’re in the hall, it’s thrilling and intense,” said D’Arne Healy, Australian Jigsaw Puzzle Association president.

“There’s sweat, swearing and pressure, and it really does feel like a competitive sport.”

Ms Healey said the weekend’s result left seasoned puzzlers “stumped”.

“Katrina Coleman was the perfect dark horse.

“Everyone in the hall knew the state champions and expected one of them to win, but Katrina came through by some margin.

“Her time is truly astonishing, considering she’s never been in a competition, and it’s up there with the best in the world.”

Ms Coleman, who will now travel to Spain next year to compete in the world championships, said she had never heard of speed puzzling until about two years ago.

“I began to see some of the times at different competitions around the country, and I would buy the jigsaws and started doing them at home as quickly as I could,” she said.

Along with tickets to Spain, Ms Coleman also won an all-expenses-paid trip to the Ravensburger jigsaw factory in Germany, but she said her energy would remain firmly focused on the championship.

Next September, Ms Coleman will face off against the world’s best speed puzzlers, including the acclaimed Spaniard, Alejandro Clemente Leon, regarded as the globe’s fastest puzzler and the clear favourite for the 2023 world championship title.

Katrina Coleman celebrates after putting down her winning piece. Picture: Jay Town

But Ms Coleman, who will now begin training for the championships, said she remained relaxed about the competition.

“I doubt I’ll be able to beat someone like Alejandro, but I’ll go along and give it my best shot and see what happens.”