NZ North Island Championship 2025

The Community Leisure Centre in Palmerston North, New Zealand hummed with steady activity across three full days of puzzle solving. Timers flashed on solving mats as judges monitored turns, hands reset scrambling covers, and competitors carried cases packed with hardware. Across thirty-three rounds of action from July 11 to July 13, a field of 59 speedcubing contenders gathered to test their skills in sixteen distinct disciplines. The atmosphere inside the hall reflected the intense focus and shared camaraderie typical of a premier cubing competition in 2025.

The three-day schedule opened on Friday with a slate of multi-layered challenges, setting the tone for the marathon weekend. Jack McDougall wasted little time asserting his presence across big cubes and blindfolded events. McDougall captured the 6x6x6 Cube title with a winning average of 2:12.54 and a best single of 2:11.02, holding off Ireland's Kalin Doherty who recorded a 2:12.89 average, while Carol Chai took third in 2:14.46. In the 3x3x3 Multi-Blind event, McDougall delivered a standout performance by solving 20 out of 22 cubes in 57:01, demonstrating supreme memorisation and precision.

Saturday brought an expanded lineup of rotating events and mid-sized puzzles, filling the venue from morning to late afternoon. McDougall continued his commanding run by claiming victory in the 4x4x4 Cube, posting a winning average of 32.97 alongside a best single of 29.87 to lead Doherty and Chai. He followed with top honours in the 5x5x5 Cube, averaging 1:04.68 to best Chai's 1:05.79. McDougall also captured first place in Skewb with a 3.27 average, Square-1 with an 11.32 average, and the standard 3x3x3 Blindfolded event where he posted a best single of 26.18.

Specialist puzzles also highlighted Saturday's extensive proceedings. Brandon Harris secured the Megaminx crown with an average of 36.15, while Liam Wadek paced the 7x7x7 Cube with an average of 3:11.14 and a single of 3:01.59. Edwin Shen controlled the Clock event, taking top honors with a 4.53 average and a 3.02 single, while Oliver Jenks won 3x3x3 One-Handed with an average of 14.34. In 4x4x4 Blindfolded, Tom Nelson claimed first with a 1:47.52 single, ahead of McDougall and James Moore, while McDougall took the 5x5x5 Blindfolded victory with a 6:18.21 single over Cole Campbell.

Away from the top steps of the podium, several competitors delivered massive personal breakthroughs across multiple disciplines. Liam Dhanjee achieved a huge milestone in 3x3x3 Cube, lowering their personal best single to 13.98, which was 73.6 percent faster than their prior best of 53.02, while also recording a first ever attempt in 4x4x4 Cube at 1:41.41. Hamuera Te Rangi Tuangahuru Bush took on seven events, cutting their 2x2x2 Cube personal best by 50.3 percent down to 3.24 and logging their first ever attempt at 5x5x5 Cube in 3:05.25. Theo Barton entered eleven events, finishing 9th in Megaminx while cutting their personal best in the event by 30.4 percent to 1:07.56 and dropping their 4x4x4 Cube single by 26.5 percent to 44.73. Jay McElwee tackled twelve events across the weekend, registering first ever attempts in 7x7x7 Cube at 4:57.24, 6x6x6 Cube at 3:17.95, and Skewb at 6.50.

The progress continued throughout the lower rounds as newer participants logged crucial marks on the official tables. Vira Huang competed across eight events, securing a 7th place finish in Clock alongside a Pyraminx personal best of 2.17 that was 42.3 percent faster than before, as well as an 18.32 in 3x3x3 One-Handed. Arwynn Subharat improved their 2x2x2 Cube mark by 40 percent to 3.09 and shaved 26.3 percent off their Skewb best down to 9.28. Making their first WCA competition appearances, Luke Ander logged first ever attempts of 16.61 in 3x3x3 Cube and 4.45 in 2x2x2 Cube, while Te Iti Kahurangi Peckham debuted with first ever marks of 5.10 in Pyraminx, 6.22 in Skewb, and 5.95 in 2x2x2 Cube.

Sunday arrived with a shift in focus to the high-stakes short formats and the final rounds of the flagship events. In the 2x2x2 Cube final, India's Ram Thakkar captured the victory with a rapid 1.47 winning average and a best single of 1.13, finishing ahead of Jack Maddigan's 1.67 average and Carol Chai's 1.75. Chai struck gold in the Pyraminx final, recording a winning average of 2.44 and a best single of 2.06 to edge past Levi Hetherington's 2.48 average and Dylan Himmelfarb's 2.82.

The weekend culminated with the classic Rubik's Cube final, where the top competitors assembled to settle the 3x3 results. Carol Chai delivered under pressure across five solves, taking the 3x3x3 Cube title with a winning average of 8.49 and a best single of 7.45. Jack McDougall finished in second place with an average of 8.81, while Jack Maddigan took third place with a 9.07 mark. The final podium showcased New Zealand's depth in speed cubing at the highest levels.

With the final timers turned off, the NZ North Island Championship 2025 concluded a full three days of competitive excellence in Palmerston North. New Zealand competitors earned 50 podium places across the weekend, joined by three for Ireland and one for India. From the long blindfolded sessions of Friday to the concluding turns of Sunday afternoon, the NZ North Island Championship 2025 highlighted the dedication and skill of the region's solvers as they look ahead to the next chapter of the season.