Pittsburgh Winter 2025

Fifty-four competitors gathered at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center for a packed schedule of speedcubing across nineteen rounds of play. Staged over February 15 to February 16, the tournament brought together puzzle solvers from across the region to test their speed. United States competitors established command early and maintained it through nearly every category, eventually capturing thirty-one of the thirty-three awarded podium positions. The commanding showing across eleven different events turned the gathering into an absolute showcase of American depth across both classic and specialty formats.

The two-day WCA competition in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, highlighted the full breadth of modern puzzle solving. From the explosive sprints of the smallest twisty puzzles to the intense focus required for large-format layers, every round demanded sharp precision. Across 2025, regional meets have continued to push the boundaries of consistency, and this stop proved to be no exception as established contenders traded top positions across several finals.

Luke Garrett stood at the center of the weekend's dominant performance, collecting six separate individual victories across the program. In the main event, the classic Rubik's Cube, Garrett secured top honors with an average of 6.51 seconds across three rounds, backed by a competition-best single solve of 5.23 seconds. Alexei Sinyavin claimed second place with a 7.42 average, while Kerry Creech completed the American sweep of the 3x3 results by securing third place with an 8.05 mark. Garrett also took gold in Pyraminx with an average of 1.81 seconds.

Garrett continued his sweep of the heavier hardware by claiming first place in the 4x4x4 Cube with a 26.54 average, ahead of China's Ganghui Lin who placed second in 30.47 seconds and Kerry Creech in third at 31.57. Moving upward in complexity, Garrett captured the 5x5x5 Cube title with a 48.09 average, the 6x6x6 Cube in 1:34.77, and the 7x7x7 Cube in 2:20.90. In the 6x6x6 Cube, Creech and Sinyavin joined Garrett for another all-American podium, while Sinyavin and Chris Choi flanked him on the 7x7x7 Cube rostrum.

Beyond the multi-layered cubes, specialty disciplines provided sharp competition throughout Pittsburgh Winter 2025. Alexei Sinyavin earned victory in Megaminx with an average of 32.27 seconds, leading an American podium lockout alongside AJ Kamal and Garrett. Chris Chi proved unbeatable in both Skewb and Square-1, taking the Skewb title with a 2.84 average ahead of Garrett and Kamal, before claiming Square-1 in 9.11 seconds. In Clock, Kerry Creech paced the field with a 4.64 winning average to finish ahead of Caleb Kearney and Carson Clark.

The fast-paced 2x2x2 Cube event saw Sujan Feist capture the title with a blistering winning average of 1.08 seconds, highlighted by a single solve of 0.68 seconds. Garrett followed closely in second at 1.16, and Xavier Ye secured third place in 1.28 seconds to lock up another sweep for the home nation. The sheer intensity of the event produced a flurry of rapid times across all three rounds, making it one of the most competitive brackets of the entire speed cubing weekend.

Away from the top of the standings, several competitors delivered massive personal breakthroughs across the weekend. Weston Johnson secured personal bests across three separate events, including a Skewb mark of 8.35 seconds that cut 60.3 percent from his previous best time, alongside a 1:36.16 in the 4x4x4 Cube and a 6.28 in 2x2x2 Cube. Edmund Barlow registered a Skewb personal best of 9.21 seconds, improving by 51.8 percent, and completed his first ever official Clock attempt in 28.89 seconds. Wayne Beck dropped his Clock best by 36.2 percent with a 17.31 solve, while Nial Yavuzturk tackled ten events, setting a 7x7x7 Cube personal best of 6:20.26 to improve by 30.9 percent and recording a 3:26.63 in 6x6x6 Cube.

Other solvers embraced new challenges at Pittsburgh Winter 2025 by branching out into fresh disciplines. Yianni Lagadinos took on ten events, logging his first official attempt in the 6x6x6 Cube at 4:54.19 while improving his Square-1 time by 29.6 percent to 44.51 seconds. John Pelley took thirteenth in Square-1 with a personal best of 19.12 seconds, improving by 26.4 percent, and registered a first Clock attempt of 20.27. Stanley Yang posted a first 6x6x6 Cube result of 3:06.18 alongside a 23 percent improvement in 5x5x5 Cube at 1:37.30, while Kallen Akhavan entered seven disciplines, logging first-time marks in the 4x4x4 Cube, 5x5x5 Cube, and Skewb.

The depth of talent across every division confirmed the strength of the regional community as another major event concluded. With thirty-one podium finishes earned by United States solvers, the tournament closed as a showcase of consistency from start to finish. Pittsburgh Winter 2025 delivered memorable achievements across every table, providing competitors across all eleven events with a solid foundation as the season progresses.