Nebraska Championship 2026

Seventeen events and 34 rounds of racing packed Prichard Auditorium as 51 competitors gathered for Nebraska Championship 2026. Held in Falls City, Nebraska, USA from April 10 to April 12, the three-day cubing competition put the full spectrum of speedcubing on display. While the traditional Rubik's Cube drew a heavy crowd, the weekend was defined by the depth of its niche and specialist disciplines. From blindfolded marathons to efficiency solving, athletes tackled everything from classic twists to high-difficulty puzzles during the 2026 state showcase.

Evan Liu produced an extraordinary weekend across the long-form and blindfolded disciplines. Liu took top honours in 3x3x3 Blindfolded with a winning single of 55.71 seconds, while Abhimanyu Singhal followed in 1:14.47 and Walker Welch placed third in 1:57.17. Liu followed that up with a commanding victory in 4x4x4 Blindfolded, recording a 3:54.77 single ahead of Emmett O'Leary-Liu at 7:42.68 and Welch at 10:41.00. Liu also captured 3x3x3 Multi-Blind by successfully resolving 13 of 15 puzzles in 58:57, showcasing the extraordinary memorisation required for the discipline.

The blindfolded endurance battles concluded in 5x5x5 Blindfolded, where Walker Welch secured the title with a single time of 20:12.00, outlasting competitors in a grueling event where neither Singhal nor Liu posted a successful solve. Welch was equally prominent in 3x3x3 Fewest Moves, claiming victory with a 24.00 mean and a single solve of 23 moves across the 19-competitor field. The versatility across extended formats highlighted the high level of preparation brought to this WCA competition.

The big-cube events saw Liu continue his sweep across the schedule. In 7x7x7 Cube, Liu topped the podium with a winning average of 2:26.93, with Welch taking second in 2:41.61 and Chaeli Baker earning third in 2:52.81. The 6x6x6 Cube final unfolded similarly, as Liu logged a 1:44.85 average to best Welch at 1:47.66 and Baker at 1:48.41. Liu added yet another title in 5x5x5 Cube with a 58.42 average and took 3x3x3 One-Handed with an average of 15.18, capping a dominant showing across non-standard formats.

Speedcubing.app founder and developer Julian Kim took on 12 events across the competition schedule. Kim secured a fourth-place finish in Clock with a personal-best average of 6.88 seconds alongside a 6.63 best single. His busy program also featured top-ten placements across Pyraminx, where he finished fifth with a 5.61 average, Megaminx in sixth with 1:06.13, Square-1 in sixth with 19.46, and Skewb in eighth with 6.47. Kim also recorded an 11th-place finish in 2x2x2 Cube and 13th-place finishes in 5x5x5 Cube, 6x6x6 Cube, and 3x3x3 One-Handed.

Away from the top steps of the podium, several competitors achieved remarkable milestones across their individual journeys. Joshua San Miguel dropped his Pyraminx personal best to 2.72 seconds, an improvement of 53.6 percent, while placing sixth in 2x2x2 Cube. Miley Harger improved her 4x4x4 Cube personal best by 45.4 percent down to 1:00.14 and notched her first official attempt in 3x3x3 One-Handed with 53.24. Ravi Alexander Arun trimmed 43.9 percent off his Pyraminx mark down to 3.14 and logged his first 5x5x5 Cube solve at 3:34.28. Elijah Palacios cut 38.5 percent from his 4x4x4 Cube best to finish in 53.58 while taking on Megaminx and Square-1 for the first time.

The personal milestones continued as Israel T. Palacios posted a 30.4 percent personal best in Square-1 at 12.34 seconds on the way to a fifth-place finish, alongside maiden attempts in Megaminx and 4x4x4 Cube. Emery Stollsteimer lowered his 2x2x2 Cube best by 19.1 percent to 5.73 seconds during an eight-event weekend. Brooks Miller took on 11 events, registering his first attempts in Megaminx at 3:29.01 and 7x7x7 Cube at 8:25.89. For James Dobbins, Nebraska Championship 2026 marked a first career tournament, highlighted by initial attempts in Clock, Skewb, and Megaminx.

The rotational puzzle categories featured sharp contests among dedicated specialists. Jayben Keene conquered Pyraminx with a 3.62 winning average over Chris Van Der Brink at 4.15 and Logan Opp at 5.37, before claiming Megaminx with a 1:00.56 average. Chris Van Der Brink won Clock with a 4.84 average, while Davis Gorman captured Skewb in 4.50. In Square-1, Michael S. Lander led the final with a 10.80 average, ahead of Keene at 12.74 and Liu at 15.73.

The weekend concluded with the high-speed standard puzzles, where Jayben Keene secured victory in 3x3x3 Cube with an 8.68 winning average from the 49-competitor field, topping the final 3x3 results. In 4x4x4 Cube, Zachary Johnson took first place with a 32.42 average in a tightly contested podium, edging Keene at 32.63 and Liu at 32.91. Kaleb Hake claimed the 2x2x2 Cube title with a 2.58 average. Across all disciplines, Nebraska Championship 2026 celebrated the full breadth of speed cubing, closing three days of intense racing in Falls City.