Europe FMC Friends Winter 2026

Scramble sheets rustled simultaneously across venues in several locations as solvers studied the Rubik's Cube with pen and paper in hand. There were no speed timers clicking or plastic frames slamming onto mats, only the steady focus of competitors calculating rotations and searching for cancellations. The Europe FMC Friends Winter 2026 connected participants across Multiple Cities, XE on January 31, 2026, offering a pure test of efficiency and technique. Across two intensive rounds, 95 competitors brought their best analytical methods to bear in a unified continental challenge.

At the center of the weekend action stood Louis-Marie Ratto of France, who controlled the field with exceptional consistency across the contest. Ratto clinched the top spot in 3x3x3 Fewest Moves by delivering a winning average of 21.33 moves and a best single of 21 in the decisive round. His remarkable execution reached its absolute peak when he delivered a national record average of 20.67 moves for France alongside a single of 20 moves, stamping his authority on the standings and anchoring the sharpest routines of the entire meeting.

The fight at the upper reaches of the leaderboard proved remarkably tight, producing a rare tie at the very peak of the standings. Yurii Riabov of Ukraine matched the frontrunner stride for stride in the final tally, recording an identical 21.33 average to share first place honours. Close behind them, Mauro Moisés Ortega López of Spain secured third place on the podium with a disciplined 21.67 average, tying alongside Wojciech Rogoziński of Poland who also turned in a matching 21.67 mark to share third position.

The weekend yielded a cascade of standout individual results from across the continent. Wojciech Rogoziński notched an average of 21.33 moves and a single of 20 moves. Poland's Radomił Baran logged a single of 21 and an average of 21.67 moves, while Moritz Lotz of Germany registered a single of 20 and an average of 22.00 moves. Italian solvers also shone brightly, with Lorenzo Mauro posting a 21 single and a 22.00 average, matched in depth by Tommaso Raposio's 20 single and 22.33 average. Danish competitors Adam Marcellus Kelly and Daniel Vædele Egdal both concluded with matching 22.67 averages, while Hungary's Bence Barát logged a 23.00 average with a 21 single, and Radosław Opoka finished on a 23.33 average.

Beyond the battle for podium hardware, the competition was defined by notable breakthroughs from solvers exploring the event or setting personal benchmarks. Nikita Shapovalov achieved a major milestone by logging a 3x3x3 Fewest Moves personal best of 32 moves, improving his previous best mark by 23.8 percent and earning 60th place. Tim Lund similarly made huge strides, lowering his personal best down to 30 moves, a 21.1 percent reduction from his prior 38. Kevin Timmons delivered a personal best of 49 moves, slicing 19.7 percent off his previous standard, while Gerard Vrieze reduced his personal record to 34 moves, a 17.1 percent drop that secured him 61st position.

Fresh milestones continued through the scoresheet as competitors tried the discipline for the first time or set career bests. Jack Valduga took on his first ever attempt at 3x3x3 Fewest Moves and produced a 32, while Vlad Negară tackled his first ever attempt at the event to post a 31 and finish in 55th place. Linus Schukraft also logged his first ever attempt at the event with a 63, while Lino Nicola Grasso improved his personal best by 16 percent to finish on 42 moves. These individual progressions captured the true spirit of development away from the main podium spotlight.

Organising a multi-venue speed cubing gathering of this scope presented a logistical showcase for the community. Linking 95 participants across Multiple Cities in 2026 required seamless coordination so that each competitor received identical conditions and scrambles during both stages. The 3x3 results across the board highlighted the depth of European talent, proving that precision and deep understanding of cube mechanics remain just as thrilling as raw physical speed in modern speedcubing.

When the final solutions were submitted and verified, the Europe FMC Friends Winter 2026 stood as a testament to strategic excellence across international borders. With podium representation divided between France, Ukraine, Spain, and Poland, the tournament illustrated a balanced and competitive landscape. As the WCA competition concluded and participants packed up their notebooks and cubes, the high standard of problem solving set a brilliant benchmark for the upcoming season of continental events.