Potsdam Puzzling 2026

Inside the halls of SUNY Potsdam, the tables were set for a concentrated day of rapid turns and precise inspection. The staging area hummed with the steady rhythm of timers starting and stopping as competitors warmed up their hands on a brisk late March morning in upstate New York. With nine official events packed into a single day on March 28, 2026, the atmosphere was defined by sharp focus and fast hands. The gathering in Potsdam, New York, USA brought together thirteen solvers ready to test their dexterity across eleven total rounds of action.

The fastest turning of the weekend naturally took centre stage, led by a blistering display in the 2x2x2 Cube final. Canada's Rémi Chrétien delivered a masterclass in efficiency, claiming victory with a winning average of 1.95 seconds after putting up a best single solve of 1.46 seconds across the two rounds. Jacob Hughes of the United States secured the runner-up spot with an average of 3.00 seconds, while fellow Canadian Louis Cormier completed the podium in third place with an average of 3.21 seconds. The rapid-fire event highlighted just how much speed can be extracted from the smallest puzzle on the schedule.

The classic Rubik's Cube drew twelve competitors across two rounds, serving as the centrepiece of the cubing competition. Evan Liu captured the title with a commanding 8.66-second winning average, backed by the best single of the event at 7.43 seconds. Louis Cormier took second place with a final average of 10.75 seconds, edging Rémi Chrétien who claimed third place with a 10.87-second mark. The 3x3 results underlined Liu's steady execution under pressure, establishing an unbeatable benchmark on the main stage.

Beyond the standard 3x3x3 Cube, Evan Liu enjoyed a remarkably dominant outing throughout the day. The American solver picked up additional victories in the 4x4x4 Cube with a winning average of 34.58 seconds ahead of Cormier's 35.53 seconds, and swept the Clock event with an average of 5.08 seconds over Chrétien's 7.95 seconds. Liu also took top honours in Skewb with a 4.31-second average and conquered the 3x3x3 Blindfolded discipline, where solving from pure memory yielded a winning average of 1:07.66 and a best single of 57.76 seconds.

The remaining events on the roster saw Jacob Hughes and Louis Cormier trade victories across specialised disciplines. Hughes secured first place in Square-1 with a winning average of 13.37 seconds, finishing ahead of Liu's 18.52 seconds. Hughes also prevailed in Pyraminx, logging an average of 4.62 seconds to edge Liu by a tenth of a second. In Megaminx, Cormier dominated the field, taking the win with an average of 49.96 seconds as the only competitor to break the minute barrier, while Liu and Hughes took second and third with averages of 1:00.72 and 1:01.03 respectively.

Away from the top steps of the podium, several competitors logged major personal breakthroughs across the day. Eric Gordonos took on two events and dropped his 2x2x2 Cube personal best to 3.85 seconds, an improvement of 35.5 percent from his previous best of 5.97, while also logging his first ever attempt at Clock with an 11.48 single to finish seventh. Fox Gheen entered all nine events, securing a fourth-place finish in the 3x3x3 Cube while cutting his Pyraminx best by 25.4 percent down to 4.26 seconds, his 2x2x2 Cube mark by 20.7 percent to 2.60 seconds, and his 4x4x4 Cube best by 19.7 percent down to 49.90 seconds. Sanjam Dash Mohanty tackled seven events, finishing fourth in Skewb and improving his 4x4x4 Cube personal best to 1:08.62, which was 6.5 percent faster than before. Alain Cormier competed in four events and logged his first ever attempt at Clock, recording a time of 43.92 seconds to finish eighth.

The day also provided a welcoming proving ground for several newcomers stepping up to their first WCA competition. Samir Ghalayini contested two events, achieving a best finish of seventh in the 4x4x4 Cube with a first ever attempt of 1:24.47 alongside a first 3x3x3 Cube solve of 15.37 seconds. Westyn Audette tackled two disciplines, finishing ninth in the 3x3x3 Cube with a debut mark of 36.41 seconds and logging a first 2x2x2 Cube single of 8.58 seconds. William Ryan Arpey stepped up for his debut appearance in the 3x3x3 Cube, recording a solid first ever attempt of 1:06.06 to complete a memorable first outing on the competitive floor.

When the final solves were tallied, the overall podium tally showed fifteen top-three finishes for the United States and twelve for Canada. The energetic mix of speed cubing sprints, complex twisty puzzles, and blindfolded execution made the one-day schedule both dense and thrilling. As timers were packed away and tables cleared at Potsdam Puzzling 2026, the competitors left SUNY Potsdam having pushed their personal limits across every turn, setting a high standard for the next season of speedcubing across the region.