Gros Jouets à Montréal 2026

Bilal El Rawas commanded complete focus on the competition floor, producing a sensational 3:33.84 single to capture the 4x4x4 Blindfolded title in stunning fashion. Blindfolded solving requires immense memorisation and absolute precision, as competitors commit hundreds of piece locations to memory before executing their algorithms entirely without sight. That singular feat set the tone for an extraordinary weekend of high-difficulty speedcubing at École de Technologie Supérieure in Montréal, Quebec, Canada. Across April 25 to April 26, the 2026 competition brought together 58 competitors across 7 demanding events and 16 total rounds.

The blindfolded drama continued in the grueling 5x5x5 Blindfolded contest, where Chris Chi of the United States secured victory with a best single of 10:08.00 in a single-round battle featuring 7 competitors. Canada's Ben Bergen took second place with a time of 16:36.00, while the remaining field succumbed to dnfs. In the 4x4x4 Blindfolded event, El Rawas of Lebanon topped the 14-person roster, finishing ahead of Canadian contenders Cyrille Beauchesne, who marked an 8:21.22 for second, and Marco Yang, who posted an 11:36.00 to complete the podium.

Big-cube speed cubing action proved equally fierce throughout the weekend. Omar Ellabban was the standout performer in the heaviest formats, claiming two victories for Canada across three hard-fought rounds in each bracket. Ellabban took the 6x6x6 Cube crown with a winning average of 1:17.62 and a best single of 1:16.60 among 37 competitors. He repeated his dominance in the 7x7x7 Cube, posting a winning average of 1:47.53 and a single of 1:39.63 against a 34-competitor field, while Albert Sanhueza Theriault secured second place in both events.

The mid-sized twisty puzzles featured razor-thin margins. In the 4x4x4 Cube, Bill Wang captured first place among 48 competitors with an average of 24.33 and a best single of 23.96. Burno Li Chak Kwan of Hong Kong finished a close second with a 24.84 average, while Albert Sanhueza Theriault rounded out the podium with 27.85. Burno Li Chak Kwan found the top step in the 5x5x5 Cube, winning with an average of 43.37 ahead of Ellabban's 43.84 and Wang's 44.26 in a tight finish among 41 competitors.

In the Megaminx event, American competitor Alexei Sinyavin delivered a masterclass over two rounds, winning the 33-person competition with a 29.31 average and a single of 27.72. Hong Kong's Burno Li Chak Kwan finished second with a 34.58 average, while Albert Sanhueza Theriault added another podium to his weekend tally with a 39.85 average. Throughout the weekend, Canadian entrants claimed 16 podium positions, alongside strong performances from Hong Kong with five, the United States with two, and Lebanon with two across the WCA competition schedule.

Beyond the championship battles, Gros Jouets à Montréal 2026 offered deep personal milestones across the roster. Malik Somers tackled 5 events, notching a 46.8 percent improvement on his 6x6x6 Cube personal best with 3:40.05, while making his first ever attempts at Megaminx in 2:21.12 and 7x7x7 Cube in 8:39.76. Daniel Bédard took on 3 events, setting a Megaminx personal best of 1:47.35 by cutting his time by 23.8 percent, and recording his first attempts in the 6x6x6 Cube at 4:45.39 and 7x7x7 Cube at 8:51.33. Témi Kergastel improved across 4 events, dropping his 7x7x7 Cube mark by 30.4 percent to 4:00.63, while Derek Arias Vitela improved his 5x5x5 Cube time by 39.9 percent to 1:43.39.

Several competitors broke new ground on the tournament floor, proving that every cubing competition holds countless untold breakthroughs. Ali Cherri made first attempts in the 7x7x7 Cube at 6:36.42 and 6x6x6 Cube at 3:43.03, alongside a 15 percent personal best cut in the 4x4x4 Cube to 52.20. Antoine Garant logged first attempts in the 7x7x7 Cube with 4:38.55 and 6x6x6 Cube with 4:12.70, while lowering his Megaminx mark by 17.1 percent to 59.71. Alexandre Dion took on 4 events and dropped his 6x6x6 Cube time by 33.1 percent to 4:44.35, while Alex Yang stepped onto the stage for their first competition, posting maiden marks across four events including a 35.14 in the 4x4x4 Cube.

While enthusiasts often track traditional 3x3 results, this weekend celebrated the unique discipline required for massive Rubik's Cube variants and complex memory challenges. Every round delivered technical precision, showcasing the mental endurance necessary to navigate multi-layered puzzles and blindfolded solves. Gros Jouets à Montréal 2026 concluded with memorable demonstrations of mastery across all seven events, setting a high benchmark for the Canadian speedcubing calendar.