STREIF - ONE HELL OF A RIDE

The Kitzbühel Hahnenkamm Races 2013 ended with a wild party which turned night into day throughout the town. The exuberant atmosphere has its reason: nowhere else are racers similarly happy to have survived the downhill run in a healthy state. For them the Streif is the ultimate challenge, which they can only overcome thanks to their complete ability and their tremendous courage.

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While the racers are still leaving Kitzbühel to head towards the next World Cup venue, the work for the 2014 race starts for the members of the Kitzbühel Ski Club (K.S.C.). “Streif – One Hell of a Ride” accompanies this partially spectacular, partially intricate work over the course of a year. At the same time, the film observes five athletes – Aksel Lund Svindal, Max Franz, Hannes Reichelt, Erik Guay and Yuri Danilochkin – in their respective homeland during summer training sessions and in their leisure time. The closer the Streif 2014 gets, the stronger the two narrative threads interlock, flanked by excursions into the history of the race – until the athletes finally arrive again in Kitzbühel. 

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There the excitement increases with every minute during the race week. The warm winter weather caused sleepless nights before the Streif 2014. Up until the very end the responsible race officials do not know whether and how the downhill run can take place. The drama before the race is followed by the drama of the race itself: Erik Guay gets injured before the final training. Max Franz must discover that he still has a lot to learn. Aksel Lund Svindal prematurely feels like a winner. And Hannes Reichelt surprises his fans with a perfect run. But at the same time he only finds out after the 2014 victory celebration that he actually should not have been allowed to start at all...