0.39 seconds
The world record tables, as recorded in August 2026, list the 2x2x2 single at 0.39 seconds, held by Ziyu Ye of China and set at the Hefei Open 2025. It is the fastest official solve of any cube event in the tables, by a wide margin.
A single is the best individual solve a competitor records in a round, as distinct from an average taken across several. In an event as short as the 2x2x2, where the puzzle can sometimes be finished in a handful of turns, the margin between a very fast solve and a world record can be a fraction of a movement of the hands.
How the 2x2x2 differs
The 2x2x2 is the smallest puzzle in the official programme and the quickest to resolve. Competitors are given an inspection period before the clock starts, during which they can plan; on a puzzle this small, an experienced solver can often plan the entire solution before touching it.
That is why the event produces times measured in hundredths rather than seconds, and why its records fall in increments that would be invisible in any other discipline. The fastest solves are not a matter of hand speed alone but of recognising, within the inspection window, a solution short enough to be executed in one continuous motion.
Who ratifies the record
The World Cube Association, founded in 2004, is the non-profit body that organises competitions and ratifies results. It maintains the regulations and the official rankings and recognises seventeen official events held in more than a hundred countries.
Every record in the tables is set at a registered competition, under association regulations, with judges and official scramblers. That is what separates a time like 0.39 seconds from a claim made on video: it was produced under conditions designed to be reproducible and observed by officials whose job is to disallow it if they were not.
Where the record sits
The 2025 record sits at the extreme end of a table whose other frontiers are also Chinese and European. In August 2026 the 3x3x3 single stood at 2.76 seconds, held by Teodor Zajder of Poland, and the 3x3x3 average at 3.51 seconds, held by Yiheng Wang of China. The 4x4x4 blindfolded single, at 51.96 seconds, belonged to Stanley Chapel of the United States.
History gives the number its scale. At the first world championship in 1982, the winning 3x3x3 single was 22.95 seconds, by Minh Thai. At the 2025 world championship, Max Park averaged 5.31 seconds on the same puzzle. Ye's 0.39 seconds is on a smaller cube, but it belongs to the same long compression of the sport's times.
What is documented — and what is not
The firm facts are the record, the time, the event and the competition: a 2x2x2 single of 0.39 seconds, set by Ziyu Ye of China at the Hefei Open 2025, listed as the standing world record in tables compiled in August 2026.
The personal record is empty. The page used here is a secondary compilation of World Cube Association results rather than an official competitor profile, which could not be retrieved. It gives no age, date of birth, home town, club or interview, and no account of other results or averages. The association's own results database is the place to confirm the details.
Watch: Ziyu Ye on camera
| Person | Country | Milestone | Age / Stat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Knights | United States | Winning the 2003 World Rubik's Games Championship in Toronto | Age 20 |
| Ziyu Ye | China | 2x2x2 world record single | — |
| Breandan Vallance | United Kingdom | Winning the 2009 Rubik's Cube World Championship | — |
| Michał Pleskowicz | Poland | Winning the 2011 Rubik's Cube World Championship | — |
| Philipp Weyer | Germany | Winning the 2019 Rubik's Cube World Championship | — |
What is documented — and what is not
✓ Documented
- 2x2x2 world record single of 0.39 seconds, credited to Ziyu Ye of China
- Set at the Hefei Open 2025 and still listed as the record in August 2026
- Records ratified by the World Cube Association, founded 2004
? Unverified, disputed or wrong
- The source used here is a secondary compilation citing the WCA, not an official competitor profile
- No age, date of birth, home town or club in the source
- No record of other results, averages or competition history
Questions people ask about Ziyu Ye
What is Ziyu Ye's world record?
The 2x2x2 single, at 0.39 seconds, set at the Hefei Open 2025 and still listed as the record in 2026.
Is that the fastest cube solve ever?
It is the fastest single in the official world record tables. Larger cubes take far longer; the 3x3x3 single record stood at 2.76 seconds in August 2026.
How is such a fast solve possible?
Competitors get an inspection period before the clock starts. On the smallest puzzle, a full solution can often be planned in advance and executed in one motion.
How old is Ziyu Ye?
No source in this record gives an age or date of birth. The source used here is a record table, not a profile.
Who ratifies the record?
The World Cube Association, founded in 2004, which runs registered competitions and maintains the official rankings.
Is Ziyu Ye on Wikipedia?
The name appears in the world record tables of Wikipedia's speedcubing article. No separate biographical article was found.
What is a single, as opposed to an average?
A single is the best individual solve in a round. An average is taken across several solves, and is recorded separately in the tables.
Where is Ziyu Ye now?
No source in this record says. The evidence gathered here is the record table entry alone.
Quick quiz: how well do you know Ye’s story?
How fast is Ziyu Ye's 2x2x2 world record single?
Where was it set?
What body ratifies speedcubing world records?
Sources
- Speedcubing (world record tables, citing the World Cube Association) — Wikipedia, 2026-08-31
Checked by the Geniuses.club editorial team. Ages are given as of September 2026.
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