The Weekend Wrap: July 17-19, 2026
Poland dominated the European Championship, Daniel Rush made every continent sub-4 in 3x3, and Bofan Zhang lost a would-be world record to a +2 penalty.
The European Championship delivered four days of titles, records, and final-solve drama, while competitions in Europe and China produced two of the weekend’s biggest milestones: Daniel Rush breaking Africa’s four-second barrier and Bofan Zhang coming within one move of the 3x3 world record.
Welcome back to the Speedcuber’s Digest Weekend Wrap, where we look at the most significant results and storylines from this past weekend.
Poland Takes Control of Euros
Poland finished the 2026 WCA European Championship with 11 of the 17 continental titles and 17 total medals, completing one of the most dominant country performances in continental championship history.
Teodor Zajder closed the championship by winning 3x3 with a 5.46 average, finishing ahead of Italy’s Valerio Locatelli at 5.74 and Tymon Kolasiński at 5.90.
Zajder’s victory completed a major recovery after a difficult start to the competition. He recorded the DNF that eliminated Poland from the Nations Cup Relay on Day 1 and placed only 20th in the opening round of 2x2. He recovered to win the 2x2 title with a 1.01 average before adding the European 3x3 championship on Sunday.
Kolasiński produced the most decorated individual performance of the competition. He won 4x4, 5x5, 6x6, and 7x7, while also taking bronze in 3x3. His 7x7 title came with a 1:41.64 European record mean, and he finished just 0.09 seconds behind his own 4x4 world record during the opening round.
Poland’s success extended well beyond its two biggest stars. Antoni Stojek won an emotional Clock final, Adrian Dębski took 3x3 Blindfolded with a 16.11 personal record on his last solve, Krzysztof Pietrusiak won Fewest Moves after closing with a 19-move solution, and Michał Krasowski upset Square-1 favorite Rasmus Stub Detlefsen.
The psych sheets suggested Poland would control the championship. By Sunday evening, the results had gone even further.
Final-Solve Drama Defines the European Championship
Several of Euros’ most memorable titles were not confirmed until the final attempt.
Stephanie Rose Martin won Megaminx with a 27.51 average after Aidan Grainger received an extra attempt on solve five. A long rescrambling delay placed the entire room’s attention on Grainger, who still had an opportunity to take the title.
Grainger appeared to use the wrong last-layer algorithm during the replacement solve and finished with a 31.04. Martin and the Irish supporters immediately erupted as the result confirmed her first European championship.
The 3x3 Blindfolded podium was also completely reshaped on solve five. Simon Praschl led through the first four attempts with a 17.18, but DNFed his final solve. Jens Haber then recorded a 16.28, Charles Daloz-Baltenberger followed with a 16.47, and Dębski took the title with a 16.11.
All three medalists recorded their best times on the final scramble, dropping Praschl from first to fourth.
Square-1 was decided by an even smaller mistake. Detlefsen stopped his final solve at 5.51, but a two-second penalty changed the time to 7.51. Without the penalty, his projected average would have been approximately 5.57, enough to defeat Krasowski’s 5.63 Polish record by 0.06 seconds.
The championship repeatedly came down to the same lesson: at this level, one move, penalty, or final attempt can separate a title from a missed podium.
Daniel Rush Makes Every Continent Sub-4
Daniel Rush recorded a 3.82 3x3 single during the European Championship, setting a new African record and making Africa the final continent to officially break the four-second barrier.
The result lowered Rush’s previous continental record of 4.82 by exactly one second. No other African competitor has officially recorded a sub-5 single, giving Rush more than a one-second advantage over the rest of the continent.
The 3.82 also moves Rush to approximately 27th in the world for 3x3 single.
Rush had already been producing a strong championship across the larger cubes, reaching the top 10 in several rounds and placing fourth in both the 6x6 and 7x7 finals. His 3.82 gave the weekend a result with significance beyond one competition.
Every WCA continental region has now produced an official sub-4 3x3 single.
Nanchang Shows the Depth of Chinese Speedcubing
While much of the cubing world was focused on Euros, another remarkable field was competing thousands of miles away at Nanchang Summer 2026.
The one-day competition brought together eight Chinese competitors ranked inside the world’s top 12 by 3x3 average. Many of them are 12 years old or younger.
Xuanyi Geng won the final with a 4.28 average, followed by Ruihang Xu at 4.65 and Zhaokun Li at 4.98.
Geng did not set a personal record, but his consistency may have been even more impressive. Across four rounds and 20 official solves, 18 of his times were below five seconds. His straight mean across all 20 solves was 4.388 seconds.
Yi Shen continued one of the fastest rises in recent speedcubing history. After attending his first official competition in January, Shen recorded personal-best averages of 4.58 and 4.51 in consecutive rounds. The results moved him to eighth in the world by average only months into his competitive career.
Yunzhi Lian continued one of the fastest rises in recent speedcubing history. After attending his first official competition in January, Shen recorded personal-best averages of 4.58 and 4.51 in consecutive rounds. The results moved him to eighth in the world by average just six months into his competitive career.
Yufang Du added a 4.36 personal-best average, Yize Dong recorded a 4.60 in the semifinal, Bofan Zhang set a 16.97 Chinese record in 4x4, and Zhen Chen established the national One-Handed single record at 6.47.
Those results would headline almost any competition. In Nanchang, they were spread across an entire field.
Bofan Zhang Comes One Move From the World Record
The weekend’s closest unofficial world record also came in Nanchang.
Bofan Zhang stopped the timer at 2.72 seconds, four hundredths faster than Teodor Zajder’s 2.76 3x3 world record.
Zhang, however, finished with the cube one move away from solved. The mistake resulted in a two-second penalty and an official time of 4.72.
The solve did not count as a world record or personal best. Zhang’s official best remains 3.39, but the attempt showed how vulnerable the current record may be.
He had already completed almost everything required to break it. The difference was one unfinished move.
Zhang later finished seventh in the final with a 5.41 average. That result would have won both the European and North American continental championships held earlier in July. In Nanchang, it was only enough for seventh place.
That comparison may be the clearest illustration of China’s current depth.
Poland showed at Euros what can happen when a country develops multiple world-class competitors and specialists at the same time. China appears to be building something similar on an even larger foundation.
Between Poland’s championship takeover, Rush completing speedcubing’s continental sub-4 map, Geng controlling an exceptionally deep 3x3 field, and Zhang stopping the timer below the world record, the weekend delivered milestones both official and painfully close.
Euros showed which country currently controls Europe. Nanchang offered another look at where the sport may be heading next.