BFF 2015: “Streif – One Hell of a Ride”, Austria

Bulgarian screening premiere of the film:

“Streif – One Hell of a Ride”, Austria, 2014, Gerald Salmina, Tom Dauer, 110’

The fairy-tale Tyrolean town of Kitzbühel buzzes with energy as the 2013 Hahnenkamm Races end with a boisterous party. And for good reason: nowhere else are the elite World Cup skiers so happy to have gotten through a race in one piece. They see Hahnenkamm Mountain¹s downhill course, the Streif, as the ultimate challenge, which can be mastered only with perfect technique and extraordinary courage.

As the ski racers leave Kitzbühel for the next World Cup location, the members of the Kitzbüheler Ski Club (KSC) are already starting preparations for the following year¹s race. ³STREIF ­ One Hell of a Ride² documents this work ­ both the spectacular achievements and the unsung efforts ­ over the course of one year. At the same time, the film follows five international athletes ­ Aksel Lund Svindal, Max Franz, Hannes Reichelt, Erik Guay and Yuri Danilochkin ­ at home in their native countries, during their summer training and in their free time. As the 2014 Hahnenkamm approaches, these two narratives become more and more interwoven, interspersed with stories from the event¹s past, until the athletes arrive back in KitzbühelŠ

The tension rises by the minute during race week. Unseasonably warm weather has already been causing sleepless nights for the organizers, and up to the last moment they are still doubtful as to how ­ even whether ­ the iconic downhill contest will take place. And the drama only intensifies. Frontrunner Erik Guay is injured before the training session. Young charger Max Franz discovers that he still has a lot to learn on the Streif. Superstar Aksel Lund Svindal is confident that victory is finally within his reach ­ but that confidence may be premature. And Hannes Reichelt surprises his fans with a perfect run, only to discover that the unforgiving course has left him far from unscathed.

 

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