Mats Valk

Mats Valk
Born (1996-05-04) 4 May 1996
Amstelveen
Nationality Dutch
Occupation Student
Years active 2007-present
Known for Rubik's Cube speedsolver

Mats Valk (born 4 May 1996) is a Dutch Rubik's Cube speedsolver. He broke the Rubik's cube single solve world record twice with times of 5.55 seconds in 2013 and 4.74 seconds in 2016. He was runner-up for 3x3x3 at the Rubik's cube world championships in 2013 and 2015. Valk is currently ranked 5th in the world for 3x3x3 average, and has been ranked as high as 2nd.

Mats Valk
Medal record
Representing  Netherlands
Speedcubing
World Championship
2015, São Paulo, Brazil 3x3
2013, Las Vegas, NV 3x3
2013, Las Vegas, NV 4x4
2011, Bangkok, Thailand 4x4
2013, Las Vegas, NV 2x2
2017, Paris, France 3x3 FMC
2011, Bangkok, Thailand Square-1
European Championship
2016, Prague, Czech Republic 3x3
2012, Warsaw, Poland 3x3
2016, Prague, Czech Republic 4x4
2014, Roskilde, Danmark 4x4
2012, Warsaw, Poland 4x4
2010, Budapest, Hungary 3x3 OH
2014, Roskilde, Danmark 6x6
2012, Warsaw, Poland 2x2
2010, Budapest, Hungary 2x2
2012, Warsaw, Poland Square-1
2010, Budapest, Hungary Square-1

Biography

Mats Valk is most famous for breaking the Rubik's cube world record twice and being the runner-up at both the Rubik's cube world championships of 2013[1][2] and 2015.[3][4] He first broke the world record with a time of 5.55 seconds at the Zonhoven open 2013 in Belgium on 3 March 2013. This record stood for over 2 years. He later broke the world record again with a time of 4.74 seconds at the Jawa Timur open 2016 in Indonesia on 6 November 2016. This solve is currently the 2nd fastest official single, just 0.01 seconds slower than the world record. Valk has also set three 4x4x4 world records, two for single solve and one for average of 5. His second single world record, 26.77 seconds on 15 April 2012, was the first official 4x4x4 solve under 30 seconds. Altogether, Valk has broken 5 WCA world records, 17 European records, and 94 Dutch national records. Valk also currently holds the world record for solving the most Rubik's cubes in 1 hour, 374 cubes, set in Paris on 21 October 2015.

Valk is also known as a creator of the VLS (Valk Last Slot) 3x3x3 algorithm set, which correctly orients the last layer while inserting the last corner-edge pair of the first two layers. Valk used one of these algorithms as to complete the cube in his 2016 3x3x3 world record.

Valk typically solves the 3x3x3 beginning with the green or blue face, unlike most speedcubers. This may be a result of his being colorblind.

Valk was born and raised in Amstelveen, the Netherlands, a suburb of the Dutch capital Amsterdam. Mats is in his last year of his bachelor's degree Business Analytics at the Free University of Amsterdam. In 2016, he was on a semester exchange at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

The Valk

Valk is also a businessman: he collaborated with the Chinese brand QiYi MoFangGe to set up his own brand, The Valk, creating cubes according to his own specifications. The design of the mechanism and the performance of the cube has to be approved by Mats Valk himself before the cube is mass-produced and sold. This to secure all cubes released under this brand are top quality. The first cube released under this brand was the Valk3[5][6] on 15 August 2016. This cube is widely considered as one of the best Rubik's cubes available now and is used by many other world class speedcubers. This is due to the fact the cube is very smooth, stable and doesn't have to be perfectly aligned to perform the next move. The size of the cube (5.55 cm each side) is a reference to his first Rubik's cube world record. He set his 2016 3x3x3 world record using a special magnetized version of this cube put together by TheCubicle.us, known as the Cubicle Valk3 M. According to both QiYi and Mats, they are now working on a new, better version of the 3x3x3 cube as well as a 4x4x4 cube, likely to be named Valk4.

Records

Record type Event Record time Competition Place Date
World records 3x3x3 Cube Single 4.74 seconds Jawa timur open 2016 Blitar, Indonesia 6 November 2016
5.55 seconds Zonhoven open 2013 Zonhoven, Belgium 3 March 2013
Most Rubik's Cubes solved in 1 hour 374 cubes DYC 2015 Paris, France 21 October 2015
4x4x4 Cube Single 26.77 seconds German open 2012 Gütersloh, Germany 14 April 2012
30.02 seconds Dutch nationals 2011 Zaandam, Netherlands 17 December 2011
4x4x4 Cube Average 33.57 seconds German open 2012 Gütersloh, Germany 14 April 2012
European records 3x3x3 Cube Single 5.13 seconds Euro 2016 Prague, Czech Republic 16 July 2016
6.41 seconds Dutch open 2011 Eindhoven, Netherlands 30 October 2011
6.84 seconds Dutch open 2011 Eindhoven, Netherlands 30 October 2011
3x3x3 Cube Average 7.24 seconds DYC 2015 Paris, France 18 October 2015
7.34 seconds China championship 2015 Guangzhou, China 4 October 2015
7.45 seconds Johannesburg 2014 Johannesburg, South Africa 23 November 2014
7.66 seconds Dutch open 2012 Voorburg, Netherlands 4 November 2012
7.77 seconds Eindhoven open 2012 Eindhoven, Netherlands 16 September 2012
9.09 seconds German open 2011 Gütersloh, Germany 10 April 2011
9.20 seconds Nemo Amsterdam open 2011 Amsterdam, Netherlands 2 April 2011
4x4x4 Cube Average 35.10 seconds Zonhoven open 2012 Zonhoven, Belgium 26 February 2012
5x5x5 Cube Single 49.49 seconds Kaohsiung open 2016 Kaohsiung, Taiwan 25 September 2016
5x5x5 Cube Average 54.71 seconds German open 2017 Gutersloh, Germany 29 April 2017
56.72 seconds Kaohsiung open 2016 Kaohsiung, Taiwan 25 September 2016
3x3x3 Cube One Handed Average 17.00 seconds Aachen open 2011 Aachen, Germany 16 January 2011
2x2x2 Average 2.43 seconds Aachen open 2011 Aachen, Germany 16 January 2011

Media appearances

References

  1. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIrpqdqqs6c
  2. ↑ https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/competitions/WC2013/results/podiums
  3. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gW8oZzPkVok&t=126s
  4. ↑ https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/competitions/WC2015/results/podiums
  5. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9ZhG1p1y-4&t=3s
  6. ↑ https://thecubicle.us/valk-p-7148.html
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