Getchell freshman brings Rubik’s speedcubing to Marysville

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, April 1, 2026

MARYSVILLE — A high school freshman organized the first-ever Rubik’s Cube competition in Marysville, drawing 125 competitors from all over the area.

The event will start at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday at Marysville Getchell High School, where the organizer, Marlo Petrola, 15, is a student. The competition is put on in partnership with Pacific Northwest Cubing and the World Cube Association.

Four years ago, Marlo fell down a social media rabbit hole filled with videos showcasing competitive Rubik’s Cube puzzle solving, known as speedcubing.

“I just got hooked,” he said in an interview Wednesday.

A year later, Marlo took part in a speedcubing competition for the first time.

“I was excited, like all the way. I was a little nervous the moments before first competing, but overall, it was a really fun experience,” he said. “I luckily did not get last place.”

Within the first year of competing, Marlo could finish a 3-by-3 Rubik’s Cube in 20-30 seconds, he said.

Now, his average is under 13 seconds. He practices whenever he has time, which is usually most days for at least 30 minutes, Marlo said.

In October 2024, he won third place at a Bellingham competition. In February 2025, he traveled to a Canadian event and finished first. In total, Marlo has attended 25 speedcubing competitions, including the 2025 World Championship in Seattle.

“I actually had the thought about organizing an event way before I got that first win. It was around like, when I was 13,” Marlo said. “Then when I got to Getchell — got into a leadership class — that’s when the spark finally lit, and that’s when I actually got like, the courage to actually get started.”

It wasn’t a particular lesson or assignment; the class’s energy helped him find the motivation, Marlo said.

Marlo’s parents immigrated to the U.S. from the Philippines. When Marlo first told them about the speedcubing event, they were surprised, said Ramon Carlo Petrola, Marlo’s father, on Wednesday.

At first, he and Marlo’s mother, Maricris Petrola, didn’t know anything about cubing, Carlo Petrola said.

“We only learned it through social media or the internet,” he said. “Out of curiosity and fun at the same time, we went every weekend.”

They went to those weekend competitions not knowing what to expect, Petrola said.

“Then, once we see him, the moment his eyes lit up, we said, ‘Wow,’” he said. “We see the passion in him. The fire.”

“We are so proud of him,” Maricris Petrola said.

From then on, they supported him however they could, Carlo Petrola said. Even if that meant traveling around the U.S. and even to Canada.

They would do anything to support Marlo and his two siblings, Marco and Maricar, he said.

Saturday’s event is for people in the area who haven’t had the opportunity to compete before, Marlo said. It’s the first Marysville speedcubing competition, but he wanted to make sure residents of Arlington and other surrounding cities also had the chance to attend.

“I figured there are people that aren’t able to travel far,” he said.

Of the 125 total participants, 100 are coming from outside Marysville, Marlo said.

Cubing is about the competition and the community, he said.

“I’ve actually made quite a lot of friends just from cubing alone,” he said. “I don’t know what I’d be doing if I never cubed at all.”

Correction: A previous version of this story misspelled Marlo’s name in the photo caption.

Taylor Scott Richmond: 425-339-3046; taylor.richmond@heraldnet.com; X: @BTayOkay