Germany Triumphs in First Rubik’s Nations Cup

the Rubik’s Cube continues to capture the imagination of people of all ages and cultures

The fastest ‘speedcubing’ nations went head to head on Saturday 15 July at the Rubik’s Nations Cup in Paris, France. Team Germany won the first Nations Cup with an overall combined time of 25.71 seconds.

Throughout the 35-year history of competitive speedcubing, entrants have solved the iconic puzzle alone, but the new Rubik’s Nations Cup format saw teams of three complete the Rubik’s Cube in relay. The prizes were presented by the legendary creator of the Rubik’s Cube, Ernő Rubik.

72 teams from 42 countries competed. Countries with larger speedcubing communities registered multiple teams. Twins Sebastian and Philipp Weyer (19) plus Cornelius Dieckmann (22) from Germany were the overall winners narrowly beating Australia to the top spot.

In teams of three, the members solved one 3x3x3 cube one after the other. The winning team was the team with the best combined score. The Rubik’s Nations Cup has not been staged before, there are no recorded times for relay solving. The scores achieved this weekend will now set the template for every Rubik’s Nations Cup in the future.

Chrisi Trussel, spokeswoman for Rubik’s Brand Ltd, said “This event has been hotly anticipated within the speedcubing community and it was exciting to watch the event unravel. The Nations Cup reminds us about how popular the Rubik’s Cube has become, because it has attracted speedcubers of all backgrounds and ages.”

Ernő Rubik, who presented the awards for the Nations Cup, is a professor of architecture from Budapest, and created the cube in 1974 to encourage his students to think about spatial relationships. Since its international launch in 1980, an estimated 400 million Rubik’s Cubes have been sold, making it the world’s most popular toy.

Ernő Rubik, 73, said, “In what some people call a digital world, it’s refreshing to see that the Rubik’s Cube continues to capture the imagination of people of all ages and cultures.

“When I first designed the Rubik’s Cube as a professor of architecture in Budapest, I simply wanted to encourage my pupils to think about spatial relationships. I certainly wouldn’t have imagined that, over forty years later, it would continue to entertain and perplex puzzle-solvers.

“Something about the Rubik’s Cube has piqued the curiosity of a second generation of cube lovers, for whom the quest for speed is never-ending.”

Links:

HIGHLIGHTS OF FRIDAY 14 JULY AT THE RUBIK’S CUBE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_MtG3UxWAA

HIGHLIGHTS OF SATURDAY 15 JULY AT THE RUBIK’S CUBE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiMcBKg3J5k
HIGHLIGHTS OF SUNDAY 16 JULY AT THE RUBIK’S CUBE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP, WITH INTERVIEW WITH ERNO RUBIK:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnJ_BUCSSHo

ENDS

High-res imagery and footage from the 2017 Rubik’s Cube World Championship are available to journalists. We would be delighted to organise interviews with Chrisi Trussell, spokeswoman for Rubik’s Brand Ltd, and members of the speedcubing community where available.

Media information provided by Famous Publicity. For more information please contact the team at 03333 442 341 or George Murdoch at george@famouspublicity.com, Adam Betteridge at adam@famouspublicity.com or Tina Fotherby at tina@famouspublicity.com.