People · Sri Lanka
Thehan Shanell Palihakkara
3×3 · top 7.1% of 288,433 all-time · competing since March 2024 · 2024PALI02
Thehan Shanell Palihakkara has been competing for 3 years. His best event is the 3×3: a personal-best single of 9.87, set at Sri Lankan Nationals 2024, puts him in the top 7.1% of the 288,433 people who have ever been ranked in the event, and 26th in Sri Lanka. Until May 2007, no official 3×3 solve in the world had been that fast. Across 5 competitions since March 2024, he has put 131 official solves on the record across six events. Solve to solve, his 3×3 times vary about 14% around a typical one; 67% of the 36,406 competitors with ten or more counted rounds hold a tighter spread. His 3×3 best has come down from 11.49 in March 2024 to 9.87, a 14% improvement. Thehan has entered five competitions, more competitions than 83% of everyone who has ever competed.
Standing, event by event
vs everyone ever ranked| Event | PB single | PB average | All-time standing | Sri Lanka | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3×3 | 9.87 | 11.69 | top 7.1% | 26 / 591 | |
| 2×2 | 3.05 | 4.84 | top 14.9% | 45 / 432 | |
| Skewb | 6.01 | 8.20 | top 25.9% | 29 / 142 | |
| Pyraminx | 9.26 | 9.99 | top 47.1% | 148 / 349 | |
| 4×4 | 1:31.26 | 1:48.83 | top 64.6% | 100 / 209 | |
| 3×3 Fewest Moves | 62 moves | — | early days — 1 solve | 35 / 37 |
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
Best single per competition, 3×3. Faster is higher — the axis is the right way up.
The story so far
- 7 Jun 2024First sub-10 3×3: 9.87 at Sri Lankan Nationals 2024.
- 9 Mar 2024First competition: Marawila Cubing Challenge 2024. A 14.68 3×3 single to start from.
Competitions
- Nattandiya Cubing Clash 2025 · 20 Oct 2025 — 2 personal bests set
- Colombo CubeCon 2025 · 27 Sep 2025 — 1 personal best set
- Colombo Cubing Revival 2025 · 8 Mar 2025
- Sri Lankan Nationals 2024 · 7 Jun 2024 — 2 personal bests set
- Marawila Cubing Challenge 2024 · 9 Mar 2024 — 2 personal bests set
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.
- Bhashith Geenura Paviwek — met in 28 rounds, finished ahead 3 times
- Samath Keppitiyagama — met in 27 rounds, finished ahead 10 times
- Santhiviraj Harikesh — met in 27 rounds, finished ahead once
Next targets
- A sub-8 3×3 single — 8,101 people have one; it is 1.87 away.
- A sub-3 2×2 single — 27,049 people have one; it is 0.05 away.
Targets move as he improves.