People · United States
Thomas Nelson
Clock · top 8.6% of 32,817 all-time · competing since April 2023 · 2023NELS05
Thomas Nelson has been competing for 4 years. His best event is the Clock: a personal-best single of 6.39, set at Moore Cubes in Loudoun 2026, puts him in the top 8.6% of the 32,817 people who have ever been ranked in the event, and 681st in the United States. Until June 2010, no official Clock solve in the world had been that fast. Across 15 competitions since April 2023, he has put 287 official solves on the record across eight events. Solve to solve, his 3×3 times vary about 17% around a typical one; 94% of the 36,406 competitors with ten or more counted rounds hold a tighter spread. His 3×3 best has come down from 41.89 in April 2023 to 23.12, a 45% improvement. Thomas has entered 15 competitions, more competitions than 95% of everyone who has ever competed.
Standing, event by event
vs everyone ever ranked| Event | PB single | PB average | All-time standing | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clock | 6.39 | 7.70 | top 8.6% | 681 / 9,172 | |
| Pyraminx | 5.14 | 7.36 | top 14.1% | 3,752 / 29,168 | |
| 2×2 | 4.89 | 8.96 | top 38.0% | 15,453 / 41,674 | |
| 3×3 | 23.12 | 27.49 | top 48.3% | 28,475 / 60,666 | |
| Skewb | 10.15 | 13.52 | top 55.9% | 10,298 / 19,164 | |
| 4×4 | 1:56.35 | — | top 80.0% | 15,048 / 19,354 | |
| 3×3 one-handed | 55.81 | 1:18.28 | top 81.3% | 12,262 / 15,900 | |
| Square-1 | 1:04.39 | — | early days — 2 solves | 5,884 / 6,846 |
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
- 15 Mar 2026Three personal bests in one day at TJHSST Winter 2026.
- 16 Aug 2025Three personal bests in one day at Virginia Championship 2025.
- 2 Nov 2024First sub-30 3×3: 27.85 at Colonial Cube Clash VA 2024.
- 12 Oct 2024Four personal bests in one day at CubingUSA Mid-Atlantic Championship 2024.
- 8 Apr 2023First competition: Richmond Spring 2023. A 41.89 3×3 single to start from.
Competitions
- Moore Cubes in Loudoun 2026 · 19 Sep 2026 — 2 personal bests set
- Rubik's WCA North American Championship 2026 · 2 Jul 2026
- TJHSST Winter 2026 · 15 Mar 2026 — 3 personal bests set
- Gobbler Cube Day Winter at VT 2026 · 21 Feb 2026
- Virginia Championship 2025 · 16 Aug 2025 — 3 personal bests set
- Virginia Always Open Spring 2025 · 6 Apr 2025 — 2 personal bests set
- Slow N Steady UMD Spring 2025 · 23 Mar 2025 — 1 personal best set
- Bethesda Winter Wonderland 2025 · 18 Jan 2025 — 2 personal bests set
- Colonial Cube Clash VA 2024 · 2 Nov 2024 — 2 personal bests set
- CubingUSA Mid-Atlantic Championship 2024 · 12 Oct 2024 — 4 personal bests set
- ODU Big Blue Winter 2024 · 17 Feb 2024 — 2 personal bests set
- Virginia Still-Open Winter 2024 · 4 Feb 2024 — 1 personal best set
- Virginia Championship 2023 · 10 Nov 2023
- ODU Big Blue Spring 2023 · 22 Apr 2023 — 1 personal best set
- Richmond Spring 2023 · 8 Apr 2023
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.
- Warren Morris — met in 59 rounds, finished ahead twice
- Elliott Smith — met in 54 rounds, finished ahead 13 times
- Griffin Kim — met in 51 rounds, finished ahead 3 times
Next targets
- A sub-6 Clock single — 2,366 people have one; it is 0.39 away.
- A sub-5 Pyraminx single — 17,242 people have one; it is 0.14 away.
Targets move as he improves.