Cube Legend | Feliks: A Decade to Godhood, Passion Never Fades

The beginning of the story

Feliks Zemdegs, nicknamed Faz, was born in Melbourne, Australia in 1995.

The story begins when Feliks was 12 years old.

One day, he stumbled upon a video on YouTube where a creator was solving a Rubik's Cube. That tiny cube, spinning rapidly in the creator's hands, amazed him — the dexterity, the dazzling speed — he was stunned.

From that moment on, he was determined to master this mysterious little object. He practiced for more than two hours a day, consistently, for two years.

In June 2008, he shared his first unofficial 3x3 average on the SpeedSolving forum: 19.73 seconds.

At that time, no one knew this boy was about to stir up a storm in the cubing world.

The Path to Progress

In 2009, Feliks participated in his first WCA competition — the New Zealand Champs.

He won the championship with a 3x3 average of 13.74 seconds and broke 12 continental records and 4 regional records — on his debut.

*Data from WCA

That was just the beginning. In 2010 at the Melbourne Summer Open, he broke both the 3x3 and 4x4 world records with averages of 9.21 and 42.01 seconds respectively.

Then in November that same year, he broke the 3x3 single world record set by Dutch cuber Erik (7.08s) with an incredible 7.03 seconds

From that moment on, he is no longer the "ordinary" Aussie boy.

In May 2011, Feliks broke his own 3x3 single solve world record again, reducing it from 7.03 to 6.24 seconds.

In June, at the Melbourne Winter Open, he shattered it once more with 5.66 seconds.

This has become his signature move — breaking his own records.

However, the journey to become the legend of speedcubing isn't always smooth sailing.

While many believed Feliks’ dominance in 3x3 was unshakable, at the 2011 World Championship, he only finished in third place, narrowly missing the champion.

Not only then, in March 2013, Mats Valk broke his 3x3 single solve world record with 5.55 seconds.

But these setbacks didn’t bring Feliks down. He kept practicing, steadily regaining his form and kept breaking through his own boundaries.

At the 2013 World Championship, Feliks narrowly defeated Mats Valk in the 3x3 final — finally reaching the peak again!And then the legend has not ended...

Whether in individual events or overall performance, he has demonstrated an almost unmatched level of strength.

No wonder, as cube fans jokingly say, "While others need to skip steps to break their PBs, Feliks breaks world records without skipping"

Here’s another set of WCA stats: Feliks has broken 121 world records and 210 continental records. He held the world’s top 3x3 average solve for 11 years, won two World Championships, and claimed a staggering 661 gold medals.

He is unquestionably a god in the cubing world, widely regarded as the most gifted and exceptional speedcuber in history.

Later on, the story seemed to reach its end. Many fans began to feel sentimental: “Feliks is getting old…”

One by one, his records were surpassed, and new talented speed cuber began to emerge. The reality is harsh, no one can stay at the top forever. Many even give up midway for various reasons.

Yet, Feliks still competes to this day. He is telling us through his action: Passion never fades.

Perhaps what truly inspires us is not just standing on top of the world, but continually surpassing ourselves.

This godlike cuber no longer needs records to prove himself.

He is the legend — the embodiment of passion, the spark that fires up the cubing world.