Kevin Hays (speedcuber)

Hays was raised in Renton, Washington, where he started speedcubing during his freshman year of high school in January 2009.^[2] He later enrolled at Washington University in St. Louis,^[3] where he continued to practice cubing while also competing as a member of the Washington University Bears varsity swim team.^[4]

In 2019, Hays competed on the American television game show series Mental Samurai, ultimately finishing in 5th place.^[5]

Hays made his competition debut at US Nationals 2009, achieving a 4th place finish in the 6×6×6 event and advancing to the final round in the 5×5×5 event. The following year at US Nationals 2010, he secured the national title in the 6×6 category with an average time of 2:36.44.^[6] At US Nationals 2011, he set his first world records in the 6×6×6 event, recording a world-record single time of 2:02.31 and an average time of 2:09.03.

In October 2011, Hays participated in his first World Championship in Bangkok, Thailand. Although he still held the world record average in the 6×6 event at this point, he recorded a DNF (Did Not Finish) result in the finals. However, he achieved a 2nd place finish in the 7×7×7 event with an average time of 3:46.99.^[7] At the 2012 US Nationals, he won the 4×4×4, 5×5×5, 6×6×6, and 7×7×7 events while finishing third in the traditional 3×3×3 event. Between 2012 and 2016, Hays consistently claimed the US national champion title in the 5×5×5, 6×6×6, and 7×7×7 events and maintained a top-three placement in these events for ten consecutive US Nationals from 2010 to 2019.^[1]

At the 2013 World Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada, Hays became the first competitor to win the 5×5×5, 6×6×6, and 7×7×7 events at a single championship.^[8] At the 2015 World Championship in São Paulo, Brazil, he defended his titles in the 6×6×6 and 7×7×7 events and finished second in the 5×5×5 event behind Feliks Zemdegs.^[9] During the 2017 World Championship in Paris, France, Hays once again defended his 6×6×6 title and placed as runner-up in the 7×7×7 event behind Feliks Zemdegs. In 2019, at the World Championship in Melbourne, Australia, he finished second in the 6×6×6 event, with Max Park emerging as the champion.^[10]

Throughout his career, Hays broke the 6×6×6 world record single time on six occasions and improved the average record nine times. From December 10, 2011, to December 17, 2016, he was the sole record holder of the 6×6 single event, improving his record from 1:54.81 to 1:32.77. On March 10, 2018, Hays set a milestone by becoming the first person to solve a 7×7×7 cube in under two minutes in an official competition, with a time of 1:59.95.^[11]

On August 10, 2019, Hays announced his retirement from elite speedcubing to focus on the hobby aspect of the sport,^[12] and he later confirmed his retirement from professional speedcubing on January 1, 2022.^[13]