Red Bull X-Alps 2023 breaks several records

This has never happened before in the history of Red Bull X-Alps. Dozens of athletes crossed the finish line today, just one day after Chrigel Maurer (SUI1) claimed his eighth victory. It was an exciting spectacle for spectators and tourists as the athletes landed on the floating raft one after the other. For them it was the end of an extraordinary and challenging 1.223km odyssey through the Alps that began just a week ago in Kitzbühel-Kirchberg, Austria.

The two South Tyroleans also completed the race on Sunday. Aaron Durogati landed in seventh position on the finish raft, Tobias Grossrubatscher appears in 15th place in the final ranking. Those are really strong placements!

For some it was an incredibly emotional moment. Tim Alongi (FRA4) was one of the many athletes who burst into tears as he was hugged by his team. “I wish I had a word for this feeling of happiness I’m feeling right now,” he said. “I worked for this for more than two years. I didn’t expect to make it to the finish line.”

Simon Oberrauner from Austria lands successfully. © Christian Lorenz/ZOOOM

“This is one of the strongest feelings of my paragliding career,” said 37-year-old Pal Takats (HUN), a well-known figure in the scene. “It's crazy - indescribable. It was always a dream to finish after failing twice. It’s still hard to understand that it’s a reality now and it happened so quickly.”

Simon Oberrauner (AUT1) “drew” a heart in the sky for his girlfriend Anna with his GPS track log. The Swiss Reto Reiser (SUI4) thrilled the spectators with his “Reto-Flip”, a somersault that he performed when landing and which ended in the water.

Taken everything out again On Saturday evening, 21 athletes took the Night Pass and were able to hike through the night to reach the goal. At the front, Damien Lacaze (FRA2), Maxime Pinot (FRA1), Pal Takats (HUN) and Patrick von Känel (SUI2) fought a bitter battle for second and third place. With a final flight and landing shortly before the official flight ban at 21:00 p.m., Lacaze was able to secure a decisive lead. Overnight he covered 80 km and climbed 2.200 meters. He reached the last turnpoint Schmittenhöhe shortly after 03:00 a.m. Rather than wait to descend at 06:00 and risk being caught by Pinot, he descended on foot. Since the race doesn't end until the athletes are at the raft, Lacaze swam there to officially take second place with a time of 6d 18h 5m.

Sponge to the target: Damien Lacaze. © Christian Lorenz/ZOOOM

Pinot reached the finish within an hour, with an official time of 6d 18h 47m. It was a remarkable comeback for the French athlete, who was in danger of falling out of the rankings. “I'm happy to be here and grateful for my team. I definitely wouldn't have made it without her. It was such a tough issue. Now I'm really exhausted - I no longer have any drive. I need to rest,” he said.

This year's edition of the toughest adventure race in the world, which was characterized by good weather throughout numerous records broken including:

- The fastest finish - 6d 6h 1m, Chrigel Maurer (SUI1)

- The longest flight - 11h 13m / 266km, set by Damien Lacaze (FRA2) on day 5

Since the eight remaining athletes still have four more days of racing ahead of them, there are still four days until the end of the race two more records possible:

- The highest number of athletes to reach the finish. The previous record was 19 in 2015.

- The first athlete to reach the finish. Eli Egger (AUT4) is currently just over 200 km from Zell am See and could make it within two days.

Racing co-founder Ulrich Grill says: “This is an incredible Red Bull X-Alps edition. We have never seen such scenes at the finish line, with so many athletes arriving so quickly after one another after a week. Incredible. I take my hat off to the performance of all the athletes and look forward to the remaining athletes who are still fighting to complete the course. We should see more than 20 at the finish, a record.”

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Red Bull X-Alps 2023 breaks several records

Emotional scenes in Zell am See, Austria, as a record number of athletes reach the finish after hiking and flying 1.223km around the Alps.

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