Ice is always interesting for photography, but if you merge ice with some of the best and fastest skaters in the world, a sizzling atmosphere, stunning surroundings, tones of steel, a huge cooling system and thousands of square metres of frozen water you are getting perfect combination for every photographer – Red Bull Crashed Ice!
Red Bull Crashed Ice athletes from 19 countries warmed up for the third stop of the four-leg Ice Cross Downhill World Championship racing in Moscow with a parade of nations in front of the iconic Lomonosov Moscow State University.
The athletes from host nation Russia concluded the parade by tradition. The Sparrow Hills are immortalized by many Russian poets and writers. The university’s main building is one of the Moscow’s most famous landmarks. The 240-meter high MSU main building was the tallest building in the world outside of New York when it was built and was Europe’s tallest building until 1990. Since the first-ever race back in 2001, Red Bull Crashed Ice has developed into one of the world’s most breathtaking winter sports events. Riders hurtle down courses up to 600 metres in length in groups of four, shoulder to shoulder, as they fight it out for victory.
The whole race is held on a steep downhill track dotted with chicanes, jumps and rollers. Pushing, sliding and sprinting are all on the agenda as the athletes race down the course, but the rules are very simple: first to the bottom wins.
In Red Bull Crashed Ice, skaters descend a steep ice canal filled with bumps, jumps, rollers and obstacles four-at-a-time, jostling for position as they reach speeds of up to 70kph. With only the top two riders going through to the next round, competition is fierce. The event is held in a classic knockout format, and the field of 64 riders starting the main event is whittled down to just four athletes competing in the final.