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People · United States

Ben Zhao

3×3 · top 0.082% of 284,439 all-time · competing since December 2017 · 2017ZHAO79

Ben Zhao has been competing for 9 years. His best event is the 3×3: a personal-best single of 4.78, set at Get to the Point 2022, puts him in the top 0.082% of the 284,439 people who have ever been ranked in the event, and 53rd in the United States. Until November 2016, no official 3×3 solve in the world had been that fast. Across 38 competitions since December 2017, he has put 1,658 official solves on the record across 13 events. Solve to solve, his 3×3 times vary about 13% around a typical one; 59% of the 35,811 competitors with ten or more counted rounds hold a tighter spread. His 3×3 best has come down from 10.80 in December 2017 to 4.78, a 56% improvement. Ben has entered 38 competitions, more competitions than 99% of everyone who has ever competed.

3×3
best event — top 0.082% of 284,439 all-time
4.78
signature single · Get to the Point 2022
1,658
official solves on the record
13%
solve-to-solve spread · wider than 59% of the field

Standing, event by event

vs everyone ever ranked
EventPB singlePB averageAll-time standingUnited States
3×34.785.71
top 0.082%53 / 59,724
5×539.6945.12
top 0.15%14 / 9,401
4×422.1026.14
top 0.19%36 / 19,072
3×3 one-handed8.2310.75
top 0.24%38 / 15,683
Megaminx35.0841.31
top 0.67%45 / 7,841
6×61:21.761:29.78
top 0.81%31 / 4,196
7×72:19.132:29.05
top 2.2%66 / 3,184
2×21.552.95
top 2.4%934 / 40,951
Pyraminx3.255.95
top 4.5%1,180 / 28,708
Square-115.6727.97
top 17.9%1,217 / 6,743
Clock9.1110.41
top 20.6%1,580 / 8,927
Skewb5.977.49
top 25.5%4,149 / 18,907
3×3 blindfolded2:34.27—
early days — 2 solves958 / 2,092

Percentile against all competitors ever ranked in each event, a fairer measure than raw rank, because the pools differ by a factor of ten.

The line so far

Dixon Winter 2017: 10.80Lions Cubing 2018: 8.71Three Attempts Chicago 2022: 6.59NxNaperville 2022: 5.31Milwaukee First 2022: 5.97CubingUSA Great Lakes Championship 2022: 5.51Get to the Point 2022: 4.78Cubing Peoria 2022: 5.55Mt. Prospect Open 2022: 6.56UIUC Fall 2022: 5.71Iowa Fall 2022: 5.49Naperville Winter A 2022: 5.19Dubuque Winter 2023: 6.34Everything in Evanston B 2023: 5.80UIUC Spring 2023: 5.34Swallow Spring 2023: 5.62OH in a Madison Ballroom 2023: 5.16Warm Up in Mount Prospect 2023: 4.86CubingUSA Nationals 2023: 4.85Naperville Summer 2023: 5.03CubingUSA Great Lakes Championship 2023: 5.28Chicago Area Twist Spring A 2024: 5.81Ackerman Spring 2024: 5.21Rubik's WCA North American Championship 2024: 5.20Cubing in Oak Creek 2024: 5.13IlliNxNois Spring 2025: 5.38UIUC Side Events Spring 2025: 5.20Rubik's WCA World Championship 2025: 5.76CubingUSA Great Lakes Championship 2025: 5.54UIUC Fall 2025: 5.08Naperville Gray Skies 2026: 6.12Illini Cubers Winter 2026: 5.40UIUC Spring 2026: 5.69Illini Cubers Spring 2026: 5.16Rubik's WCA North American Championship 2026: 5.064x4 Off US-40 IL 2026: 5.394.7810.802 Dec 201729 Aug 2026

Best single per competition, 3×3. Faster is higher — the axis is the right way up.

The story so far

Competitions

Reading this page: a single is one solve's time · an average is the middle three of five solves, best and worst discarded · a PB is a personal best · a DNF (did not finish) is an attempt with no valid result: a popped piece, an unsolved face, an over-limit memorisation · top X% compares against everyone ever ranked in that event, which is fairer than raw rank because event pools differ tenfold.

The circuit

The people whose scorecards keep turning up next to his.

Next targets

  • A sub-4 3×3 single — 38 people have one; it is 0.78 away.
  • A sub-30 5×5 single — 1 people have one; it is 9.69 away.

Targets move as he improves.