‘Run of my life’: French skier hits 255.5km/h to break speed record
Simon Billy, 31, broke the record on a 98% incline slope at the World Speed Skiing Championships in Vars
Simon Billy toasts breaking the world speed skiing record
Screenshot / International Ski and Snowboard Federation
A Frenchman has broken the speed skiing world record.
Simon Billy, 31, hit 255.5km/h as he stormed down a slope in Vars, Hautes-Alpes, on Wednesday (March 22)
It is the second year in a row that he has won the title of world’s fastest skier.
‘One of the most important days of my life’
Mr Billy broke the record at the World Speed Skiing Championships.
The venue, Vars ski resort, is famous for its 98% incline slope that makes skiing at extreme speeds possible.
He was joined on the podium by the brother of the former world record holder Simone Origone (silver) and Manuel Kramer (bronze).
“[The championships] is the most important day of the winter and certainly now one of the most important days of my life,” said Mr Billy.
“It was absolutely crazy, the run of my life,” he added.
Swedish Britta Backlund won the women’s event but did not break the world record.
Mr Billy’s attempt was the first recorded instance of a skier breaking the 255km/h mark.
Speed skiing competitors regularly break the 200 km/h mark, and it is the only sport where humans can reach such speeds without the use of a motor.
Related articles
French hospital inundated with 80 - 100 ski accidents a day
Three ski deaths in France including an American and a British tourist
