Visayas Championship 2025

Eleven competitors stepped up to the tables for the blindfolded discipline, facing a test where pure memorisation meets total sensory deprivation. With a blindfold secured over the eyes after a brief inspection phase, solving the classic Rubik's Cube demands immaculate mental mapping and absolute execution under pressure. Brian Acuña emerged victorious in the single-round contest, delivering a decisive best single solve of 53.53 seconds. Gabriel Angelo V. Hilado claimed second place with a mark of 1:11.61, while Yuji Yoshida locked in the third podium spot at 1:18.47.

Held across August 9 to August 10 at Robinsons Pavia in Pavia, Iloilo, Philippines, the Visayas Championship 2025 drew a field of 65 competitors contesting 14 official events over 20 intense rounds. The regional cubing competition showcased high-level speedcubing across an extensive spectrum of puzzles, ranging from side events to the main stage showdowns. Filipino solvers dominated the podium tables throughout the two-day schedule, capturing all 42 available podium positions across the disciplines in an energetic display of talent in 2025.

In the flagship 3x3x3 Cube event, Leo Borromeo displayed blistering consistency across three challenging rounds. Borromeo secured the title with an average of 5.50 seconds in the final, complemented by a lightning-fast best single of 4.94 seconds. Inigo Miguel B. Palisoc earned the runner-up place with an average of 7.93 seconds, while Ace Christian C. Wong took third place at 8.04 seconds. The deep 3x3 results demonstrated standard-setting precision among 64 entrants fighting through each elimination stage.

Palisoc proved to be the most prolific competitor of the weekend, assembling a massive collection of victories across multiple formats. In the 3x3x3 One-Handed event, Palisoc topped the field of 43 solvers with a winning average of 12.30 seconds. On the larger hardware, Palisoc swept the 5x5x5 Cube in 47.32 seconds, the 6x6x6 Cube in an average of 1:25.87, and the 7x7x7 Cube in 2:05.33. Ace Djun T. Aguirre Jr. and Miguel Gonzaga chased hard, collecting multiple podium places across those big cube categories.

Multi-event specialist Jose Polorhenzo Aquino also captured three titles, taking the 2x2x2 Cube with an average of 2.95 seconds, Square-1 in 9.68 seconds, and 3x3x3 Fewest Moves with a single solve of 25 moves. Leo Borromeo added another gold in the 4x4x4 Cube with an average of 20.81 seconds, while Ace Christian C. Wong won the Clock event in 5.21 seconds. Mars Daniel Kudemus claimed Pyraminx in 3.51 seconds, Kirby Jay Caragan took Skewb in 3.68 seconds, and Nicole Jnus Macalalad conquered Megaminx in 36.53 seconds.

Away from the top steps of the podium, several competitors delivered massive personal breakthroughs. John Owen B. Hayagan made enormous strides, dropping his Pyraminx personal best to 7.41 seconds from 27.23, which is 72.8 percent faster, alongside a 2x2x2 personal best of 6.41 seconds. Lord Sun Moon S. Blanco improved his 2x2x2 mark to 6.51 seconds from 13.35, an improvement of 51.2 percent, while recording first attempts in Pyraminx at 14.41 seconds and 4x4x4 at 2:55.45. Prince Ian Napud took on 10 events, cutting his Pyraminx best by 44.2 percent to 5.29 seconds and notching initial attempts of 3:52.01 in 7x7x7 and 29.76 seconds in Clock.

Kaeleb Chaiz S. Tan posted a 3x3x3 personal best of 16.64 seconds, a 35 percent drop, while logging debut results of 4.55 seconds in 2x2x2 and 7.66 seconds in Pyraminx. Princess Jmirrha Teñoso recorded debut marks in 4x4x4 at 56.94 seconds and 2x2x2 at 5.48 seconds, paired with a 26.2 percent improvement in Pyraminx to 6.66 seconds. Lovely Faith P. Roque registered a 16.1 percent drop in 3x3x3 down to 21.48 seconds and made a first 2x2x2 attempt of 9.23 seconds. John Laurence C. Agregorio improved his one-handed mark by 16 percent to 17.06 seconds and his 4x4x4 to 42.25 seconds, while Anton James Sadsad entered 6 events, completing debuts in Clock at 54.45 seconds, one-handed at 1:03.83, and 4x4x4 at 1:41.04.

The 2x2x2 Cube category produced a wave of notable individual bests across the competition brackets. Bea Alexandra Marie Flores logged a 4.26 single and 5.46 average, while Yuji Yoshida registered marks of 2.14 single and 3.54 average. Jose Polorhenzo Aquino hit a 2.16 single, and Nicole Jnus Macalalad delivered a 2.64 single with a 3.91 average. Additional official personal marks came from Leonard Leoriz H. Perez, Andrew Thomas Salazar Pacilan, Mars Daniel Kudemus, Denver Paul Quimba, Liam Tagomata, and Hannah Grace O. Rafio.

As the final timers stopped at Robinsons Pavia, the Visayas Championship 2025 highlighted the depth of speed cubing excellence in the Western Visayas. From the quiet intensity of blindfolded solving to the frantic pace of the 3x3x3 finals, the WCA competition proved to be a vibrant gathering for solvers pushing their limits. With personal milestones set across the board, competitors left Pavia with new benchmarks to chase into the next season.

Napuno ng sigla ang Robinsons Pavia habang nagtipon ang animnapu't limang manlalaro para sa dalawang araw ng matinding tunggalian sa speedcubing. Mula sa pagbubukas ng mga mesa hanggang sa pag-init ng mga timer, naging sentro ang Pavia, Iloilo, Philippines ng bawat galaw at paspasang pag-ikot sa pagitan ng Agosto 9 hanggang Agosto 10, 2025. Labing-apat na magkakaibang uri ng puzzle ang nakahanay sa iskedyul, kung saan bawat manlalaro ay naghanda para sa kabuuang dalawampung rounds ng labanan.

Sa pagsisimula ng Sabado, agarang uminit ang bakbakan sa mas malalaking puzzle at mga natatanging kategorya. Ipinamalas ni Inigo Miguel B. Palisoc ang kanyang dominasyon sa mga big cubes nang maaga pa lamang. Sa 7x7x7 Cube, nakuha niya ang unang puwesto gamit ang winning average na 2:05.33 laban kina Miguel Gonzaga na nagtala ng 2:32.79 at Ace Djun T. Aguirre Jr. na may 2:49.24. Sinundan pa ito ni Palisoc ng tagumpay sa 6x6x6 Cube sa pamamagitan ng 1:25.87 average, habang pumangalawa si Ace Djun T. Aguirre Jr. sa 1:41.61 at pumangatlo si Miguel Gonzaga sa 1:46.91.

Hindi nagpahuli ang ibang kategorya sa unang araw ng paligsahan. Sa 3x3x3 Blindfolded, na nangangailangan ng masusing memorisasyon bago pabilisan ang pag-ikot nang nakapiring, nagwagi si Brian Acuña sa pamamagitan ng single na 53.53 laban kina Gabriel Angelo V. Hilado na nagtala ng 1:11.61 at Yuji Yoshida na nagtala ng 1:18.47. Samantala, nanguna naman si Ace Christian C. Wong sa Clock matapos magtala ng winning average na 5.21, kasunod sina Aaron Josh C. Wong na may 6.10 at Yuji Yoshida na may 6.46.

Pagsapit ng Linggo, lalong tumindi ang labanan sa mga pangunahing kaganapan habang papalapit ang pagtatapos ng cubing competition. Nakuha ni Jose Polorhenzo Aquino ang tagumpay sa 2x2x2 Cube tangan ang winning average na 2.95 upang talunin sina Miguel Gonzaga na may 3.15 at Aaron Josh C. Wong na may 3.23. Nagwagi rin si Jose Polorhenzo Aquino sa Square-1 sa average na 9.68 at sa 3x3x3 Fewest Moves gamit ang 25 moves. Sa 3x3x3 One-Handed naman, nanguna si Inigo Miguel B. Palisoc sa average na 12.30.

Sa likod ng mga laban sa podium, marami sa mga manlalaro ang gumawa ng sarili nilang marka sa entablado. Nagtala si Rene Jr E. Asoy ng bagong personal best sa 3x3x3 Cube na 30.98 na tatlumpu't walong porsyentong mas mabilis kaysa dati. Pinatunayan din ni Kiannyl Ezra Cordovero ang husay nang magrehistro ng 51.64 sa 3x3x3 One-Handed na mas mabilis ng tatlumpu't limang porsyento, kasama ang 21.15 personal record sa 3x3x3 Cube. Sa Clock naman, pinutol ni Carl Juzztine L. Tan ang kanyang oras patungong 10.10 bago nagtala ng 16.66 sa 3x3x3 One-Handed para sa ika-labindalawang puwesto, habang si Jose Dave Silarde ay sumubok sa unang pagkakataon sa 4x4x4 Cube na nagbunga ng 1:13.57.

Naging mahalagang simula rin ang kompetisyon para sa mga bagong manlalaro na sumabak sa kanilang unang WCA competition. Sumabak si Josh Eliakim Samson sa anim na dibisyon kabilang ang kanyang unang subok sa 5x5x5 Cube sa oras na 3:53.84, 3x3x3 One-Handed sa 48.99, at 2x2x2 Cube sa 5.75. Unang sabak din ito para kay Justeen Lei D. Dioso na umabot sa ika-siyam na puwesto sa 3x3x3 Blindfolded at nagtala ng 12.06 sa 3x3x3 Cube, 18.03 sa 3x3x3 One-Handed, at 4.53 sa 2x2x2 Cube. Si Yule Christine Cajilig ay nagrehistro ng 18.58 sa 3x3x3 Cube, 38.16 sa 3x3x3 One-Handed, at 1:12.76 sa 4x4x4 Cube, habang si Xian Matthew Lim ay nagtala ng unang opisyal na subok sa Pyraminx sa 35.07, 2x2x2 Cube sa 24.51, at 3x3x3 Cube sa 1:20.05.

Sa iba pang kaganapan sa entablado, naghari si Nicole Jnus Macalalad sa Megaminx gamit ang 36.53 winning average, samantalang nakuha ni Kirby Jay Caragan ang panalo sa Skewb sa bilis na 3.68. Sa Pyraminx, nanguna si Mars Daniel Kudemus tangan ang 3.51 average. Napanatili rin ni Inigo Miguel B. Palisoc ang kanyang dominasyon sa 5x5x5 Cube matapos magtala ng winning average na 47.32 laban kina Ace Djun T. Aguirre Jr. na may 53.62 at Leo Borromeo na nagtala ng 56.10.

Bumida naman si Leo Borromeo sa 4x4x4 Cube nang makuha ang panalo sa bilis na 20.81 winning average, na sinundan nina Inigo Miguel B. Palisoc sa 25.48 at Ace Djun T. Aguirre Jr. sa 31.43. Sa pinakatampok na 3x3x3 Cube, ipinamalas ni Borromeo ang pinakamalinis na pag-ikot ng Rubik's Cube matapos selyuhan ang kampeonato sa winning average na 5.50 at best single na 4.94, habang pumangalawa si Inigo Miguel B. Palisoc sa 7.93 at pumangatlo si Ace Christian C. Wong sa 8.04.

Naging matagumpay ang pagtatapos ng Visayas Championship 2025 kung saan lahat ng apatnapu't dalawang puwesto sa podium ay nakamit ng mga pambato ng Pilipinas. Ang bawat round at bawat solve sa Robinsons Pavia ay nagpakita ng mataas na antas ng husay at dedikasyon ng mga manlalaro sa buong rehiyon. Sa pagtiklop ng mga timer, nag-iwan ang paligsahan ng mga bagong personal na tala at mga di malilimutang tagumpay bago ang susunod na yugto ng mga paligsahan.