BY CONQUERING THE BEC DES ROSSES FOR THE FOURTH TIME AND WINNING THE XTREME VERBIER FOUR YEARS AFTER HIS PREVIOUS VICTORY ON THE MOUNTAIN, AURÉLIEN DUCROZ HAS LEAPT INTO THE ELITE CIRCLE OF FREERIDING LEGENDS!
The Bec des Rosses is his own stomping ground. This mythical peak, universally recognized as the toughest freeriding challenge in the world, is also his favorite.
With three victories in his pocket (in 2006, 2009, and 2011), Aurélien Ducroz (FRA) added to his legendary history at the Bec by qualifying as a wild card.
Scratched from last year’s Xtreme only three days before the event due to a broken leg, the Chamonix native started with one of his “signature” runs: Fast, committed, and banking on the largest possible jumps without hesitation.
As the first starter, the judges awarded him a conservative 88.50 points. A long wait then followed, with many thrilling runs, but in the end Aurélien Ducroz pulled off his 4th victory!
“This makes me so happy! A 4th win for the 20th anniversary of the Xtreme! I love this mountainside so much, I feel at home there… I almost switched trails at the last minute and then Reine and I got motivated and that was it! I’m so glad!”
Of course, Aurélien had plenty of practice and skiing time this year, as the five episodes of CHAM’LINES 2015 show. After being gone 5 days for a photo shoot in Norway, he travelled directly to Verbier on Thursday to focus on options at the Bec des Rosses whose configuration was totally different from other years. Due to the snow conditions, the organizers had decided to not place the starting line at its traditional location. New trails therefore had to be blazed. Aurélien studied the terrain with Reine Barkered, his friendly rival (they have finished 1st and 2nd in this event three times, and have the same partners, Dynastar and Helly Hansel), settling on his winning option that left him only a few hundredths of a point ahead of the Swedish rider!
“I didn’t have the pressure of the world championships but I didn’t have a start in my legs either. I wanted to really show that I was one of the best skiers. This victory has a really special feel, you hope to win the Xtreme once in your career, but to win four times!…”
About Aurélien Ducroz:
A truly modern adventurer Aurelien Ducroz is the 2009 World Chanpion Freeride. True to his “Find your limits” Alpinist spirit, in 2016 Aurlien will participate in the legendary Vendée Globe solo around the world sailing race, the Everest of sailing, via the three major capes of Good Hope, Leeuwin and the Horn.
Not satisfied with being one of the world’s leading free-riders – an extreme winter sport where the participants dice with death every time they put on their skis – Aurélien has set himself an even more demanding challenge: to cross the 6’700 kilometers of the Atlantic Ocean solo in a Transat 6.50 sailing boat. Because Aurélien’s world is one of extreme challenges, where the conditions on the mountains or on the high seas are always changing and never less than dangerous, he has to have a watch that he can rely on in all circumstances. That is why he has chosen the Alpina Seastrong Tacht Timer to accompany him in all his adventures. Alpina & Aurélien also support theRace for Water Foundation and its Water Guardian programe of witch Aurélien is an Ambassador.
