Hawaiʻi Big Island Winter 2025

Inside the halls of Hawaiʻi Preparatory Academy, the morning air on February 8, 2025, carried the focused rhythm of turning plastic and dropping timers. Twenty-three solvers gathered at the tables, warming their fingers and checking their hardware in Waimea (Kamuela), Hawaii, USA. Stacks of puzzles sat arranged beside inspection mats as the single-day gathering began. Organizers called the opening flights of solvers to the stations, setting in motion a full slate of 14 rounds across eight official events in the island setting.

The opening rounds of the Rubik's Cube drew all 23 competitors to the floor to begin their progression through three stages of head-to-head timing. Early action established the pace for the cubing competition, with the first round narrowing the field before a competitive second round set up the afternoon final. Alongside the main puzzle, early qualifying sessions for side events pushed contenders through fast-paced heats as judges managed the steady flow of scrambles and solves across the floor.

Short-format puzzles took center stage through the midday hours, showcasing high turn speeds on the 2x2x2 Cube, Pyraminx, and Skewb. Anthony Carrillo delivered a standout run across all three disciplines, securing victories in each event. Carrillo captured the 2x2x2 Cube title with a winning average of 2.70 seconds, edging out Matty Hiroto Inaba at 2.76 and Cary Huang at 3.30. In Pyraminx, Carrillo topped the podium with a 5.49 average over Payton Corey at 5.65 and Chris Martin at 6.05. Carrillo completed the sweep in Skewb, recording a 4.24 winning average ahead of Huang and Corey.

Specialist events broadened the scope of the speedcubing program as midday turned to afternoon. Ruby Lu earned the Megaminx victory with a 44.51 average, posting the best single of the event at 39.56 ahead of Huang and Carrillo. In 3x3x3 Blindfolded, where competitors must rely entirely on memorization before executing their solves without sight, Huang posted a winning single of 41.89 seconds to take the top spot. Lu claimed second place with a 1:27.57 single, followed by Jaden Matsunaka with a successful solve of 4:28.97.

Beyond the top podium steps, the tournament served as an important proving ground for emerging solvers throughout the draw. Wyatt Turpin delivered major breakthroughs across three events, lowering his Skewb mark to 11.29 seconds for a 38.3 percent improvement, his 2x2x2 Cube best to 6.62 seconds, and his 3x3x3 Cube best to 21.13. Damian Chen trimmed his Skewb single to 11.30 seconds, a 34.6 percent drop, while taking his 3x3x3 mark down to 15.80 and setting a Pyraminx best of 9.86. Ty Ruderman cut his Pyraminx single to 5.59 seconds, 32.4 percent faster than before, alongside a 3x3x3 One-Handed personal best of 45.24.

Several competitors marked notable milestones and debuts during the schedule. Liam M. Osborne completed their first WCA competition, recording first-ever official attempts with a 1:06.68 in the 3x3x3 Cube and 19.19 in the 2x2x2 Cube. Lauriezell Collado also made their official debut, logging a 26.73 in the main event and 8.23 on the 2x2x2 Cube. Olamau Miyashiro took on two new events, posting a 7.91 on 2x2x2 and 2:16.19 in 4x4x4 Cube. Lisa Kucala tackled seven events, highlighted by a first-ever 3x3x3 One-Handed attempt of 1:11.38 and a 4x4x4 Cube personal best of 1:19.14. Rydin Nakatsu reached a best finish of fourth in Skewb while improving their 2x2x2 Cube single to 3.67 seconds.

As the schedule moved toward the late afternoon, larger puzzles and specialized techniques tested remaining finalists. In the single-round 4x4x4 Cube contest, Matty Hiroto Inaba established full control of the bracket, taking first place with an average of 21.50 seconds and the day's best single at 19.97. Yoji Ogura followed in second place with a 36.90 average, while Carrillo took third at 41.70. Inaba continued his momentum in 3x3x3 One-Handed, winning the two-round event with a 12.61 average ahead of Lu at 18.19 and Huang at 21.75.

The concluding event of the schedule brought the crowd together for the final round of the 3x3x3 Cube. The 3x3 results confirmed Inaba's sweep of the three-layered variants, as he secured the title with a 5.77 winning average and the competition's fastest single solve of 4.63 seconds. Ogura earned the runner-up position with a 7.65 average, and Lu rounded out the podium at 8.80. Across the day, competitors representing the United States and Japan collected the 24 available podium placements.

The successful conclusion of Hawaiʻi Big Island Winter 2025 closed out a dense day of speed cubing in Kamuela. From full-roster heats in the morning to late-session finals across eight puzzle disciplines, the event delivered decisive victories, technical milestones, and personal bests across the board. The tournament wrapped up as equipment was packed away, concluding an active chapter of competition on the Big Island.