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Sujan Feist Lowers 2x2x2 Average World Record to 0.86 at Ohio Competition

A speedcuber solving a 2x2 cube on a Stackmat timer at a gymnasium-style competition with spectators in the background.

COSHOCTON, Ohio — The 2x2x2 landscape shifted again on December 13, 2025, when American speedcuber Sujan Feist posted a blistering 0.86-second average at Kids America Christmas Clash OH 2025, setting a new World Cube Association (WCA) world record. Feist delivered the mark in the first round at the Kids America Sports Complex, a community venue in Coshocton, with WCA delegates Braden Richards and Evan Brown overseeing the event. The competition’s official highlights confirm the milestone. (worldcubeassociation.org)

Background/Context

The 2x2x2 average mark has been hotly contested over the last two seasons. Prior to Feist’s run in Ohio, the long-standing barrier was 0.88 seconds, set by Yiheng Wang at Hangzhou Open 2024 on December 15, 2024—a time still listed by Guinness as the benchmark after frame-by-frame reviews reshaped several 2024–2025 results earlier this year. (guinnessworldrecords.de)

In 2025, Wang returned with multiple elite averages, including 0.89 at the gateway@KLIA2 Cube Open in Malaysia, underscoring how narrow the margins have become at the top of the event. (worldcubeassociation.org)

The record environment has also been influenced by the WCA’s evolving stance on video evidence. In late 2024 and through 2025, the WCA Regulations Committee (WRC) formalized criteria for using frame-by-frame analysis in limited circumstances—principally to assess potential violations of start procedures under Regulations A4b/A4b1—citing the need to ensure the integrity of ultra-fast results. This approach led to retroactive penalties on a number of historical times and clarified how the community should expect elite marks to be reviewed. (worldcubeassociation.org)

Meanwhile, on the single-solve side of the event, the bar is even more extreme: China’s Ziyu Ye pushed the 2x2 single to 0.39 seconds at Hefei Open 2025 on October 25, a context-setting reminder of how unforgiving the event has become. (en.wikipedia.org)

Key Details

Feist’s world record came in Round 1 and was composed of the following five attempts: 0.86, 1.02, (0.56), (1.42), 0.70. Under WCA rules for averages of five, the fastest and slowest solves—in this case, 0.56 and 1.42—are dropped, and the remaining three times are averaged, producing the new world record 0.86. The competition’s “By Person” results page lists the breakdown and flags the performance as “WR.” (worldcubeassociation.org)

The run slots Feist atop the official WCA records list for the 2x2x2 average. Summaries of current world records maintained on reference pages corroborate the update, listing Feist at 0.86 and Ye’s 0.39 for the single. (en.wikipedia.org)

The 2x2 field has seen extraordinary depth in 2025. Alongside Feist’s landmark performance, Wang’s 0.89 average at gateway@KLIA2 and multiple sub-1s singles across the calendar emphasize how much the event rewards technical precision—from inspection strategy and first-layer recognition to efficient insertions on Ortega/CLL/EG strategies. With average times now perilously close to the 0.8 range, even a fraction of a second gained (or lost) at the timer start matters, which is partly why the WCA refined its guidance around video analysis and start detection. (worldcubeassociation.org)

Significance/Impact

Feist’s 0.86 breaks through a ceiling that stood—officially—since 2024 and does so amid tighter scrutiny of ultra-fast starts. It is a performance that not only claims the world record but also signals a renewed U.S. presence in an event that has swung between continents in recent years. The time surpasses the widely recognized 0.88 mark from Hangzhou and holds up under the WCA’s current review protocols, making it a potent statement about what’s achievable without flirting with procedural penalties. (guinnessworldrecords.de)

For competitors, the new standard sharpens several takeaways:

  • Consistency is king: two low-0.8 solves sandwiching a 0.70 allowed Feist to absorb a dropped 1.42 and still land at 0.86. (worldcubeassociation.org)
  • Clean starts matter more than ever: under today’s rules, a great average risks downgrades if starts violate A4b/A4b1, even inadvertently—something the WRC has stressed in recent decisions. (worldcubeassociation.org)
  • The single record is far from a ceiling but highlights the volatility of 2x2: a 0.39 single is proof that any given attempt can be world-class, but sustaining that pace across five solves is the harder frontier. (en.wikipedia.org)

What’s Next

With Feist’s 0.86 now the target, the 2x2 community heads into 2026 eyeing whether sub-0.85 averages are realistic under the stricter enforcement climate. The WCA has indicated that its next round of regulations updates will take effect on January 1, 2026, continuing a broader push for clarity and competitive fairness—developments that could subtly influence how top solvers approach setups, starts, and conservative backups within an average. For now, Coshocton’s Round 1 stands as the new benchmark, and Feist’s name sits at the top of the record table. (worldcubeassociation.org)