Will the legendary speed cuber "Feliks Zemdegs" make a come back?

[Nabhan Niyaz]

Feliks Zemdegs AKA the legendary speed cuber held more than 120 world records. But now he holds only a few Continental records. Yes of course it is impossible for him to get back all of his titles, but do you think whether he will atleast make a come back in 3x3?

 

[FenTheGoat]

Absolutely not

 

[turtwig]

Kinda sad that he didn't make finals at Worlds 2023. It was probably his last chance. Too many Chinese kids nowadays.

 

[Lord_Oscar]

My heart hopes he will, but my brain says he won’t. Worlds 2019 was a moment of the changing of the guard imo. Since then, he’s almost become irrelevant. With the likes of Tymon, Yiheng, Ruixhang and all the other young, up-and-coming cubers all vying for WR, I just don’t think he will.

However, I hope I’m wrong, and it would be so cool to see perhaps the most legendary comeback in cubing history.

 

[bldcuber314]

I don't think Feliks wants to make a comeback as a professional cuber. He still attends comps, and seems to be enjoying cubing as it is with no wish to be the best in the world again(I mean he was for over 10 years). He probably knows that with cubing where it is now, he can't start breaking WRs in 3x3 again, which is fine. He is still the greatest of all time.

 

[abunickabhi]

I can relate to Feliks, I am also 28 years old and find it impossible to get time to practice cubing.

I hope he stays in the community as an ambassador yo.

 

[Swagrid]

Too many Chinese kids nowadays.

 

[Deleted member 36445]

I can relate to Feliks, I am also 28 years old and find it impossible to get time to practice cubing.

I hope he stays in the community as an ambassador yo.

Didn't know you have more than 120 world records

 

[Gecko777]

Didn't know you have more than 120 world records

Actually 320, get it right

 

[kake123]

Kinda sad that he didn't make finals at Worlds 2023. It was probably his last chance. Too many Chinese kids nowadays.

Didn't even make semi-finals, but mainly because of some mess ups probably. His first round was much better compared to his second.

 

[AhsanDaCuber125]

No, I don’t think he will take a comeback, like @turtwig said, too many Chinese kids nowadays. And they’re ones beating the old legends away. Well the good thing is, he’s still enjoying cubing.

 

[kake123]

Feliks Zemdegs AKA the legendary speed cuber held more than 120 world records. But now he holds only a few Continental records. Yes of course it is impossible for him to get back all of his titles, but do you think whether he will atleast make a come back in 3x3?

If he became a full-time speedcuber then maybe (the chances of a comeback would have been better if he did that a few years ago). But it seems clear that is not what he wants. He had already achieved a level of dominance across multiple events that cannot be replicated by anyone else, especially in a more competitive era. He is still revered globally even in the Chinese cubing community.

If age played a role, even the oldest competitors on the top 10 3x3 averages are like much younger than him (around 6 years younger for Max, around 8 years younger for Tymon) (Late teens/Early twenties vs Late twenties). With their recent performance, they are fast "kids" too.

It would be much healthier to recognise both the legends of the past as well as the legends right now, instead of downplaying the achievements of either.

I recall the cubing community congratulated Feliks when he got an average really close to his PR a few months ago:

In my opinion, he has already made a comeback.

 

[abunickabhi]

Didn't know you have more than 120 world records

I have never held any WR.

The best world ranking I got was WR#4.

Feliks is still in the game with very less practice he does.

 

[CornerTwisted]

I like how I could tell the median age of this thread almost instantly

 

[Jennah]

Feliks Zemdegs AKA the legendary speed cuber held more than 120 world records. But now he holds only a few Continental records. Yes of course it is impossible for him to get back all of his titles, but do you think whether he will atleast make a come back in 3x3?

Unfortunately most legends have a downfall in their career at some point so he most likely won't make a comeback. But he broke some amazing records at the highest point in his cubing career and still continues to have a great impact on cubers today.

 

[An Animating Cuber]

I like how I could tell the median age of this thread almost instantly

Ok but you’re probably younger Kael

 

[Gecko777]

I like how I could tell the median age of this thread almost instantly

11-15

 

[qwr]

Unfortunately most legends have a downfall in their career at some point so he most likely won't make a comeback. But he broke some amazing records at the highest point in his cubing career and still continues to have a great impact on cubers today.

It's not unfortunate and it's not a "downfall". It's not realistic for someone to be on top of a competitive sport forever and ten years is already pretty amazing in longevity. That would be like saying "why isn't Michael Jordan or Michael Phelps still competing". You can celebrate their achievements anyhow. Feliks will always be the GOAT.

 

[SkewbIsTheBestEvent]

Feliks is getting old. His hands don't move as fast.

 

[Jennah]

It's not unfortunate and it's not a "downfall". It's not realistic for someone to be on top of a competitive sport forever and ten years is already pretty amazing in longevity. That would be like saying "why isn't Michael Jordan or Michael Phelps still competing". You can celebrate their achievements anyhow. Feliks will always be the GOAT.

My bad, I didn’t mean to word it that way. By “downfall” I meant they won’t be world class forever, I probably should’ve used a different word. But I agree, feliks was and still is amazing.