Nairobi NxN Cubes 2025

Inside the bustling halls of Shree Lohana Mahajan Mandal, the unmistakable clack of plastic layers turning at top speed set the tempo for an action-packed Saturday. Thirty-two competitors gathered across eight rounds of head-to-head play, turning Nairobi, Kenya into the epicenter of regional puzzle solving on August 23, 2025. With six distinct events on the schedule ranging from pocket-sized puzzles to massive cubes, the energy remained high from the opening scrambles all the way to the final podium calls.

For the local fans in attendance, Kenyan standout Jay Kuria Muthari delivered an unforgettable showcase on home soil. Lining up in the premier Rubik's Cube category against a field of 28 contenders, Muthari asserted his command across two rounds of play. When the final 3x3 results were tallied, Muthari claimed the gold medal with a blistering winning average of 10.28 seconds, anchored by a best single solve of 8.05 seconds to outpace Japan's Yukinobu Tsukioka, who finished second with an 11.89 average.

Muthari was not finished making his mark on the weekend, returning to the tables for the 3x3x3 One-Handed contest. Navigating complex fingertricks with a single hand across 16 entrants, Muthari once again secured the top spot on the podium. His winning average of 21.06 seconds and a best single of 16.51 held off compatriot Sur Shah, who took silver with a 24.17 average, while Tsukioka took bronze in 24.48, giving Muthari a sweep of both three-layered disciplines at Nairobi NxN Cubes 2025.

Sur Shah emerged as another dominant force throughout the gathering, capturing multiple titles across the heavier NxN formats. In the 5x5x5 Cube, Shah bested eight competitors with a winning average of 1:40.23, featuring a single of 1:28.15, to finish ahead of Kelvin Githiari Waturi and Meshack Musundi. Shah followed that triumph by claiming top honors in the 6x6x6 Cube with a 3:27.87 average and a 3:17.57 single, outpacing Lenny Kamau Githua. Shah also earned bronze in 3x3x3 and silver in both one-handed and 4x4x4.

The 4x4x4 Cube crown belonged to Eman Kabiru, who posted a swift winning average of 54.38 seconds alongside a single of 47.86 to win the 15-person field ahead of Shah and Musundi. Meanwhile, the short-format action of the 2x2x2 Cube delivered rapid turnarounds across two rounds. Allan Kipchumba took the title with a razor-sharp 2.95 average and a 2.09 single, leading an all-Kenyan podium ahead of Imani Ritho with 4.24 and Nygel Emmanuel Msagha with 4.59. In total, Kenyan competitors captured 15 of the 17 available podium spots.

Beyond the championship trophies, this WCA competition revealed remarkable progress across the roster. Jeremy Obwino took on four events, achieving an 11th-place finish in 4x4x4 Cube, posting his first ever attempt at 3x3x3 One-Handed in 1:10.75, and slicing his 2x2x2 Cube personal best down by 43 percent to 4.15. Abdulrahman Mohamed entered four events, setting an 11th-place best finish in 2x2x2 Cube, trying one-handed solving for the first time in 1:01.30, and improving his 2x2x2 personal best by 40.8 percent to 3.41 alongside a 25.1 percent drop in his 3x3x3 best to 19.65. Jared Gift Kimutai dropped his 3x3x3 single by 38.4 percent to 31.54, while Ethan Kiplimo recorded his first one-handed time of 47.56 and cut his 2x2x2 mark by 32.5 percent to 4.49.

The breakthroughs continued across all experience levels as Mark Otieno Achar entered four events, placed sixth in 5x5x5 Cube, and lowered his 5x5x5 personal best by 31.4 percent to 2:35.64. Aiden Wainainah improved his 3x3x3 mark by 28.2 percent down to 27.30, while Denis Ndemwa contested five disciplines, took eighth in 5x5x5, and improved his 3x3x3 personal best by 20.2 percent to 23.13. Myles Kinyita took on four events, achieving a fourth-place finish in 3x3x3 Cube, recording a first ever attempt in 3x3x3 One-Handed of 27.97, and dropping his 4x4x4 best by 17.5 percent to 54.51.

The full-day program highlighted the growing depth of speed cubing in the region, bringing together experienced medalists and fresh talent under one roof. With fast times logged across eight official rounds, Nairobi NxN Cubes 2025 demonstrated the high caliber of play in East Africa. As the tables cleared and timers powered down, the local speedcubing community concluded a memorable chapter of competition, setting a strong benchmark for the upcoming season.