Hawaiʻi Big Island Fall 2025

Inside the halls of Hawaiʻi Preparatory Academy, the rhythmic clack of turning plastic gave way to pure silence whenever blindfolds were lowered over competitors eyes. Solving a Rubik's Cube without sight demands complete memorisation of every piece, flawless spatial recall, and steady execution under absolute isolation. Across a single intense day of speedcubing on October 25, 2025, in Waimea (Kamuela), Hawaii, USA, competitors tackled twelve rounds across ten events. The blindfolded discipline tested mental endurance to its limits, requiring solvers to turn high-speed calculation into blind physical execution without the luxury of visual corrections.

Evan Liu proved unstoppable throughout the day, capturing victory in every single discipline staged at Hawaiʻi Big Island Fall 2025. In the 3x3x3 Blindfolded competition, Liu claimed first place by registering a winning single time of 1:31.25, navigating the complex memorisation phase to secure the top spot among four competitors. His dominance continued across the larger puzzles as well, winning the Megaminx with a 1:03.52 average and a 53.62 best single, alongside a commanding performance in 5x5x5 Cube where he logged a winning average of 58.07 and a single of 51.14.

The traditional speed cubing categories saw Liu maintain the same blistering pace. He secured the 3x3 results title with an 8.87 average and a 7.87 best single, leading a field of 14 competitors. Jaden Matsunaka finished second in the 3x3x3 Cube with an 11.10 average, while Julian Kim claimed third with a 13.90 average. Liu also took top honors in the 2x2x2 Cube with a 2.94 average, won the 4x4x4 Cube averaging 33.66, and led the Clock event with a 5.59 average. He completed his ten-event sweep by taking the Pyraminx with a 3.96 average, the Skewb with a 4.41 average, and Square-1 with a 15.72 average.

Speedcubing.app founder and developer Julian Kim put together a comprehensive schedule across all ten disciplines at the competition, securing nine podium finishes and logging two personal bests. Kim earned second place in the 2x2x2 Cube with a 3.83 average and a 1.98 single, second in the 4x4x4 Cube averaging 51.60, second in Megaminx with a 1:10.27 average, and second in Skewb at 6.91. He picked up third-place finishes in Pyraminx at 7.18, 5x5x5 Cube at 1:31.97, and Square-1 at 27.11, while recording personal bests on his way to third in 3x3x3 Cube with a 13.90 average and third in Clock with a 9.46 average, alongside a fourth-place finish in 3x3x3 Blindfolded.

Behind the top tier of podium finishes, the cubing competition served as a milestone for several developing competitors who achieved major personal time drops. Kealoha Ke delivered substantial breakthroughs across five events, dropping their Pyraminx personal best to 6.65, which was 45.2 percent faster than their previous best of 12.14, while cutting their 2x2x2 Cube personal best to 4.81, an improvement of 43 percent, alongside a first ever attempt at Skewb in 24.84 and a sixth-place finish in 2x2x2 Cube. Wyatt Turpin tackled four events and lowered their 2x2x2 Cube best to 3.71, a 44 percent improvement from 6.62, while also taking 11.9 percent off their Pyraminx record with a 10.85 best and a sixth-place finish.

Other competitors marked important firsts and sharp progression at Hawaiʻi Big Island Fall 2025. Wyatt Hutchins made their official debut in three events, posting a first ever attempt at 3x3x3 Cube of 33.04, a 9.24 in 2x2x2 Cube, a 6.79 in Pyraminx, and earning ninth in Pyraminx. Ku'uipo Tahiti'a Smith also stepped up for their first WCA competition, recording a 36.85 in 3x3x3 Cube and an 18.19 single in 2x2x2 Cube across two events. Ka'ale McGerity placed fourth in Skewb with a personal best of 9.20, an 18.2 percent improvement, while making first attempts in 2x2x2 Cube in 5.10 and Pyraminx in 10.43. Tainui Alameda improved their Skewb best by 21.6 percent to 16.36, finished seventh in Skewb, and posted first attempts in Pyraminx with 17.30 and 2x2x2 Cube with 7.47. Ty Ruderman took on four events with a best finish of sixth in Skewb, while Darwin Williams competed in three events, achieving a best finish of tenth in Pyraminx.

The podium fights across the specialty events highlighted the depth of local talent. In Clock, Chris Martin took second place behind Liu with an average of 7.33, ahead of Kim in third. Martin also secured second place in the Pyraminx with a 5.92 average and third in Skewb at 13.07. In the 2x2x2 Cube, Jackson Goodpaster took third place with a 5.48 average, joining Liu and Kim on the rostrum. Square-1 saw Jaden Matsunaka capture second place with a 22.10 average, matching his second-place finish in the 5x5x5 Cube where he recorded an average of 1:27.22.

As the day wrapped up at Hawaiʻi Preparatory Academy, the gathering in Waimea (Kamuela), Hawaii, USA demonstrated the focus required to excel across the entire spectrum of competitive puzzle solving. From the intense concentration of sightless memorisation to the rapid pace of turning sprints, the 14 competitors showed remarkable versatility. With ten titles claimed by a single solver and dozens of individual personal milestones achieved across twelve rounds, Hawaiʻi Big Island Fall 2025 provided a memorable showcase of speedcubing precision on the Big Island.