Maestro of the cube
A few twists and turns and presto the mystery of the cube is solved! 16-year old Osidu Nayanajith shocked audience members and the jury at the recently concluded Sri Lanka’s Got Talent (SLGT) contest with his mind boggling performance as he shattered consecutive records by solving the Rubik’s cube – a herculean task for most of us.
The moment Osidu entered the record books as fastest Sri Lankan to solve a 5 x 5 cube and a 3 x 3 Rubik’s cube single-handedly
At this year’s contest, Osidu’s performance ensured that he left an indelible mark not only in the minds of the audience but in the minds of any individual watching him perform on stage. His performances include solving the cube using his feet and moreover blindfolded. What adds to his credit was his performance at the final, during which he entered the record books as the fastest Sri Lankan to solve a 5 x 5 cube and a 3 x 3 Rubik’s cube single-handedly.
The entire audience watched in amazement as Osidu clocked a timing of 03 minutes and 45.15 seconds in solving the 5 x 5 Rubik’s cube thereby breaking the previous record of 04 minutes and 14.15 seconds. Commenting on his breath-taking performance at the final Osindu says that he was very confident of breaking the record involving the 5 x 5 cube.
“I was confident of breaking the record since I had been practicing for two weeks,” he says during an email interview.
Osidu did not stop there. He continued to stun the audience by clocking a time of 29.04 seconds as he bettered the previous record of 36.16 seconds in solving the 3 x 3 Rubik’s cube. However, Osidu adds that he felt nervous before breaking the record as he had failed to do so during his practice sessions. He says that he spent almost a year to master the skill of solving the 3 x 3 cube.
Speaking about his journey so far, the young maestro says that it all began two years ago when he decided to take up this challenge. He attributes his success to his father who taught him the basics of solving the cube, and his mother for constantly motivating him to take part in the SLGT contest.
Osindu says that he developed this skill by reading up and watching videos on the web.
Osidu who is currently pursuing his Ordinary Level (O/L) education at St. Thomas College in Matale says that striking a balance between his studies and practicing his act was a challenge. However, the positive response from his family, friends, teachers and area residents motivated him to overcome all odds.
As Osidu prepares for the upcoming G.C.E O/L exams this year, he aspires to become an astronomer in the future. As far as his act is concerned, his goal is to shatter the existing world record by clocking the lowest time taken to solve a cube.
Video grab shows Osidu at work on his Rubik’s Cube at the SLGT competition
