Please Be Quiet Auckland 2025

Ten competitors stepped into the 1st Mount Albert St Jude's Scout Hall on September 21, 2025, ready to tackle some of the most demanding disciplines in speedcubing. Running a specialized contest dedicated to concentration events requires meticulous structure and tireless coordination from the local organizers, delegates, and staff. Over the course of six rounds across five events, the organizing team kept the venue running smoothly, ensuring the silent atmosphere necessary for solvers attempting complex memorization and deep analytical solves under official tournament conditions.

The single-day gathering represented a vital fixture on the regional calendar in Auckland, New Zealand. While standard speed cubing tournaments often feature large crowds and rapid-fire turns, this WCA competition placed unique demands on the administrators. Judges, scramblers, and officials had to coordinate multi-cube setups, monitor extended attempts, and uphold strict silence throughout every session. Thanks to their dedication, the intimate field enjoyed an environment where high-level problem solving could flourish from morning to evening.

Blindfolded execution took center stage, led by Kate Grahame of the USA, who put together a commanding series of performances across multiple disciplines. In 3x3x3 Multi-Blind, Grahame conquered the field by submitting a winning single of 9/10 cubes in a time of 40:56. She continued her dominance in the big cube blindfolded categories, taking first place in 4x4x4 Blindfolded with a best single of 8:08.22 and adding another victory in 5x5x5 Blindfolded with an impressive 16:10.00 single.

The standard 3x3x3 Blindfolded category spanned two rounds and brought intense competition to the hall. Xavier Courteau-Laing earned the top spot on the podium for New Zealand, posting a winning average of 1:03.59 alongside a best single of 51.93 in the final round. Grahame secured second place with a single of 58.15, while Caleb Hall rounded out the podium in third with an average of 1:27.23. The victory highlighted Courteau-Laing's sharp consistency when navigating the classic Rubik's Cube without visual feedback.

Efficiency was the core test in 3x3x3 Fewest Moves, an event where solvers receive an hour to map out the shortest possible solution. Aneurin Hunt captured first place with an outstanding winning average of 28.00 moves, powered by a best single solution of 26 moves. Courteau-Laing picked up his second podium of the weekend by taking second place with an average of 35.67, closely followed by Ram Thakkar of India, who finished third with a steady 36.00 average over the three attempts.

Behind the top podium spots, several competitors achieved meaningful milestones that demonstrated the depth of the field. Saarthak Negi took on two events during the day and delivered a massive leap in 3x3x3 Fewest Moves, recording a personal best of 34 moves to improve upon a previous benchmark of 51 by 33.3 percent on the way to a fifth-place finish. Ethan Ruoqing Chen also entered two events and registered a standout first attempt at 3x3x3 Fewest Moves, finishing in sixth position with a score of 34.

Other competitors made their presence felt through focused single-event campaigns. Nick Ng entered 3x3x3 Blindfolded as his sole pursuit of the day, securing a fourth-place finish with a best single of 2:45.61. Meanwhile, seasoned traveler Yi-Fan Wu concentrated on 3x3x3 Fewest Moves, taking on the tactical solving discipline to record an eighth-place finish. These performances reflected the focused energy across the entire participant list regardless of overall standings.

In total, competitors from New Zealand collected eleven podium places, while the USA claimed four and India earned one across the day. The complete set of 3x3 results across both blindfolded and fewest moves disciplines reflected an intensely focused day of competition. Without the steady guidance of the organizers managing every detail at Please Be Quiet Auckland 2025, such an exacting schedule could not have succeeded. Their work provided a world-class platform for every solver in Auckland, New Zealand as the 2025 season progressed.