Tacoma Winter 2025

Inside the Greater Tacoma Convention Center, the rhythmic click of plastic mechanisms echoed across the hall as 150 solvers gathered for a full day of action. Timers flashed under bright overhead lights while judges reset stop mats and scrambled puzzles according to strict tournament regulations. Across five distinct disciplines and ten scheduled rounds, the atmosphere in the room was defined by steady hands and calculated turns rather than reckless speed.

The single-day WCA competition on January 18, 2025 brought elite talent to Tacoma, Washington, USA, where the difference between reaching a podium and falling short came down to disciplined pacing. In the premier 3x3x3 Cube event, consistency proved decisive over volatile single solves. Matty Hiroto Inaba claimed the title with a tournament-best 6.60 final average, navigating three rounds of pressure to lead the field.

The 3x3 results demonstrated how vital reliable execution is across a five-solve average. While Matty Hiroto Inaba posted a round-winning 5.28 single in the final stage, second-place finisher William Greninger kept pace with a steady 6.97 average. Asher Kim-Magierek secured third position with a 7.04 mark. Across earlier rounds, Inaba had also registered an unmatched 5.79 average and a 4.95 single, demonstrating that top-tier speed cubing requires repeating world-class times solve after solve.

Matty Hiroto Inaba added a second gold medal in the 4x4x4 Cube, managing the extra layers with an authoritative 23.94 winning average and a best single of 22.27 across two rounds. Max Siauw captured the runner-up spot with a 26.87 average, while William Greninger stepped onto his second podium of the weekend by taking third place with a 29.25 mark. The larger Rubik's Cube variant punished parity errors, rewarding those with rock-solid lookahead.

The 3x3x3 One-Handed division shifted the spotlight to Asher Kim-Magierek, who took the victory with a 10.86 average and a dazzling 7.62 best single among 78 competitors. Max Siauw pushed close behind, logging an 11.10 average for second place, narrowly edging Matty Hiroto Inaba, who finished third with an 11.13 average. The narrow margins highlighted how single-digit hundredths of a second dictate placements in tight one-handed brackets.

Beyond the championship battles, the cubing competition saw remarkable personal milestones across the roster. Logan Wolpin took on all five events, securing a personal best of 36.81 in Square-1, which cut 31.5 percent off a previous best of 53.76, while also recording a first official attempt of 1:45.99 in 4x4x4 Cube and 42.66 in 3x3x3 One-Handed. Tayler Merwin entered five events and improved their 4x4x4 Cube personal best to 1:11.81, an improvement of 25.4 percent over 1:36.28, in addition to debuting in Square-1 with 28.04. Olly Duel achieved a 49.4 percent drop in Square-1 with a 27.66 personal best and clocked a first official 6x6x6 Cube attempt of 8:37.15. LV Snell took on four events, setting debut marks of 8:13.62 in 6x6x6 Cube, 1:47.47 in 4x4x4 Cube, and 32.91 in 3x3x3 One-Handed.

The breakthrough performances continued down the roster as competitors expanded their repertoires. Thomas Dennison posted an 8:14.63 first attempt in 6x6x6 Cube alongside a 19.4 percent personal best drop in 3x3x3 Cube to 23.26. Avery Mellinger delivered a 21.9 percent personal best improvement in 3x3x3 Cube at 13.95 and completed a first 3x3x3 One-Handed run of 39.40. Timotheus Kim notched a 1:14.89 first attempt in 4x4x4 Cube and lowered their 3x3x3 Cube mark by 18.7 percent to 18.00. Henry Bolinger entered four events, posting debut solves of 28.74 in Square-1 and 29.75 in 3x3x3 One-Handed, alongside a 22.1 percent personal best improvement in 3x3x3 Cube down to 10.94.

Specialist puzzles brought further excitement to the venue floor. In Square-1, Max Siauw commanded the two-round bracket of 51 entrants, winning with a 6.55 average and a tournament-best 5.00 single. Sameer Aggarwal followed in second place with a 7.05 average, and Asher Kim-Magierek took third with 7.93. In the 6x6x6 Cube, Kevin Hays navigated the single-round contest of 49 competitors to earn first place with an impressive 1:25.65 mean, highlighted by a 1:18.19 single.

With all 15 podium places earned by competitors representing the USA, Tacoma Winter 2025 concluded as a masterclass in composed, high-level speedcubing. As competitors packed up their mats and cubes, the day stood as a reminder that peak performance is forged through steady, repeatable solves under pressure.