# Feliks Zemdegs
**Feliks Aleksanders Zemdegs** (born 1995) is an Australian speedcuber who won the World Cube Association (WCA) World Championship in 3x3x3 [Rubik's Cube](https://www.edgepedia.org/rubiks-cube) solving in 2013 and 2015 and holds the career record of 121 world records across WCA events.[1](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/persons/2009zemd01/?mobile-app=true&theme=wiki) • [2](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/761147-most-wins-of-the-wca-world-championship)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Nationality / WCA ID | Australia; WCA ID 2009ZEMD01[1](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/persons/2009zemd01/?mobile-app=true&theme=wiki) |
| Competition record | 177 competitions, 11,289 completed solves[1](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/persons/2009zemd01/?mobile-app=true&theme=wiki) |
| Records | 121 world records, 228 continental records, 7 national records[1](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/persons/2009zemd01/?mobile-app=true&theme=wiki) |
| Championship medals | 800 gold, 168 silver, 82 bronze[1](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/persons/2009zemd01/?mobile-app=true&theme=wiki) |
| World titles | 3x3x3 World Champion 2013 (Las Vegas) and 2015 (São Paulo); one of two cubers, with Max Park, to win the WCA World Championship twice[2](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/761147-most-wins-of-the-wca-world-championship) |
| Best 3x3x3 results | Personal best single 4.12 seconds (world rank 52), personal best average 5.53 seconds (former world record)[1](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/persons/2009zemd01/?mobile-app=true&theme=wiki) • [3](https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/trends/rubiks-cube-how-to-be-a-speedcuber-feliks-zemdegs-shares-his-mantra-5608891.html) |
| Solving method | CFOP (Cross, F2L, OLL, PLL), also known as the Fridrich method, with additional techniques to reduce move count[3](https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/trends/rubiks-cube-how-to-be-a-speedcuber-feliks-zemdegs-shares-his-mantra-5608891.html) |
## Beginnings
Zemdegs first picked up a Rubik's Cube at age 12 after watching [speedcubing](https://www.edgepedia.org/speedcubing) videos on YouTube; his first solve, following a tutorial, took about two to three hours.[3](https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/trends/rubiks-cube-how-to-be-a-speedcuber-feliks-zemdegs-shares-his-mantra-5608891.html)
His rise was rapid. On 20 November 2010 he set a 3x3x3 world record single of 7.03 seconds at Melbourne Cube Day 2010, a mark that stood through a period in which he also held world records in 2x2x2, 4x4x4, 5x5x5, and one-handed solving; a 2010 interview recorded him holding the world records for 3x3x3 average (8.52 seconds), 4x4x4 single (34.41 seconds), 5x5x5 single and average (1:02.93 and 1:07.59), 2x2x2 average (2.35 seconds), and 3x3x3 one-handed average (14.76 seconds).[4](https://www.liverpoollearningpartnership.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Art-of-the-Cube.pdf) • [5](https://www.cubeskills.com/blog/speedsolvingcom-interviews-from-2010-and-2018)
## World championships
In 2015 he defended the world title he had won in 2014, taking the championship in São Paulo, Brazil, with a winning solve of 5.695 seconds, a time that did not beat the then world record of 5.25 seconds held by Collin Burns.[6](https://time.com/3966044/rubiks-cube-under-6-seconds/)
Only two speedcubers have won the WCA World Championship twice: Zemdegs and the American Max Park, his principal rival and the subject with him of the 2020 Netflix documentary *The Speed Cubers*, directed by Sue Kim.[2](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/761147-most-wins-of-the-wca-world-championship) As of 9 November 2023, Zemdegs had accumulated 121 cubing records over 144 official WCA competitions.[2](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/761147-most-wins-of-the-wca-world-championship)
## Records and personal bests
His current personal records show strength across the full range of WCA events: 17.98 single and 21.57 average on 4x4x4, 36.18 and 40.10 on 5x5x5, 1:09.26 and 1:13.96 on 6x6x6, 1:45.99 and 1:53.48 on 7x7x7, and 6.88 single and 9.60 average one-handed, with national and continental ranks of first in most big-cube events.[1](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/persons/2009zemd01/?mobile-app=true&theme=wiki)
## Method and teaching
Zemdegs uses the [CFOP method](https://www.edgepedia.org/cfop-method) (Cross, F2L, OLL, PLL), the layer-by-layer approach also known as the Fridrich method, together with add-ons to the standard process that reduce the number of moves per solve.[3](https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/trends/rubiks-cube-how-to-be-a-speedcuber-feliks-zemdegs-shares-his-mantra-5608891.html) He has described competition solving as largely subconscious: most of the thinking happens during inspection, where he plans his first 10 to 12 moves and chooses the best starting color.[3](https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/trends/rubiks-cube-how-to-be-a-speedcuber-feliks-zemdegs-shares-his-mantra-5608891.html)
## Later career
Zemdegs has continued competing into the 2020s, winning Australian events such as Solving In Sale 2024 (4.48 single, 6.08 average) and Australian Nationals 2025 (5.71 single, 5.90 average).[7](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/competitions/SolvingInSale2024/results/podiums) • [1](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/persons/2009zemd01/?mobile-app=true&theme=wiki) At the Rubik's WCA World Championship 2025 he placed 11th in the 3x3x3 first round with a 5.96 average and 5.32 best, and 23rd in the semi final with a 6.60 average and 5.13 single, well behind the winning pace of [Tymon Kolasiński](https://www.edgepedia.org/tymon-kolasinski)'s 5.04 average in round 1.[8](https://www.competitiongroups.com/competitions/WC2025/results/333-r1) • [9](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/competitions/WC2025/results/all?event=333)
Outside cubing, he dropped out of a mechanical engineering degree at the [University of Melbourne](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-melbourne) and has worked for the [Australian Government](https://www.edgepedia.org/australian-government) in investments; he lists golf and running among his hobbies.[3](https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/trends/rubiks-cube-how-to-be-a-speedcuber-feliks-zemdegs-shares-his-mantra-5608891.html)
## References
1. [Feliks Zemdegs, World Cube Association profile](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/persons/2009zemd01/?mobile-app=true&theme=wiki)
2. [Most wins of the WCA World Championship, Guinness World Records](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/761147-most-wins-of-the-wca-world-championship)
3. [Q&A: Speed Cuber Feliks Zemdegs on breaking 100 world records, Moneycontrol](https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/trends/rubiks-cube-how-to-be-a-speedcuber-feliks-zemdegs-shares-his-mantra-5608891.html)
4. [Art of the Cube, Liverpool Learning Partnership](https://www.liverpoollearningpartnership.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Art-of-the-Cube.pdf)
5. [SpeedSolving.com Interviews from 2010 and 2018, CubeSkills](https://www.cubeskills.com/blog/speedsolvingcom-interviews-from-2010-and-2018)
6. [Watch This Teen Solve a Rubik's Cube in Under 6 Seconds, Time](https://time.com/3966044/rubiks-cube-under-6-seconds/)
7. [Solving In Sale 2024 podiums, World Cube Association](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/competitions/SolvingInSale2024/results/podiums)
8. [Results, WCA World Championship 2025, 3x3x3 Round 1, Competition Groups](https://www.competitiongroups.com/competitions/WC2025/results/333-r1)
9. [Rubik's WCA World Championship 2025 results, World Cube Association](https://www.worldcubeassociation.org/competitions/WC2025/results/all?event=333)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Board, card, and puzzle games › Puzzles › Physical, logic, and word puzzles › Twisty puzzles and Rubik's Cube*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license