Swatch Rocket Air Finals - Photo Epic
This was one amazing dirt jumping contest! Sold out venue packed 4000+ strong was filled with positive vibrations and anticipation for an epic show. And none of them left disappointed. Frankly, this was one of the best crowds we've ever experienced. The riders who made it to the finals also stood up to their task. We saw many gnarly moves and stylish tricks. Some old faces had to swallow defeat, where for good balance, new ones were able to stand in the spotlight. Here's a raw video of practice and qualification.
![Swatch Rocket Air Finals 2016]()
![Swatch Rocket Air Finals 2016]()
![Swatch Rocket Air Finals 2016]()
![Swatch Rocket Air Finals 2016]()
![Swatch Rocket Air Finals 2016]()
![Swatch Rocket Air Finals 2016]()
![Swatch Rocket Air Finals 2016]()
![Swatch Rocket Air Finals 2016]()
![Swatch Rocket Air Finals 2016]()
![Swatch Rocket Air Finals 2016]()
MENTIONS: @FMBA / @lunatyk / @flyingmetal
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 It turns out that Swiss jungle can be pretty cold. |
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| Sam Pilgrim was surprisingly not on the finalists list. Luck was not on his side and he couldn't finish both of his quali runs. |
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| Lukas Knopf, a young German rider, made the cut to the finals and he started off with a big trick, but unfortunately he made a mistake on the biggest jump, which cost him almost all of his confidence. He rode well in the 2nd run but was unable to significantly improve his own score. |
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| Nuno Barroso shared Lukas Knopf's faith. A bad crash in the first run left him with a hurting knee. He tried again in the second run and nailed the trick, which he crashed on the first go. |
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| Correct me if I am wrong, but I am pretty sure it's not the first time Szymon Godziek qualified as a number one rider and... finished in13th. Just look at those tricks, he should be a regular on the podium... |
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| Tomas Lemoine just outside top 10, sitting in 12th. |
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| Daryl Brown had good, consistent runs. |
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| Matt Jones opened the top ten. |
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| Jakub Vencl from the Czech Republic rode well to earn enough points for 9th place. One of the biggest highlights of his run was the 360 tuck-no-hander on the first drop. |
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| Anton had a bit of a stressful qualification round. He just got in the 15th spot. He was able to improve in finals and jumped up to 8th. |
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| Mehdi Gani broke his collarbone a couple of years ago on a similar drop. Glad to see he beat his demons and came back to 100% of his riding abilities. |
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| Ryan Nyquist was stoked with his 6th place. No doubt, well deserved! |
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| Pavel Alekhin is coming back to where he belongs. After a long struggle with injuries and bad luck in contests, he finally found his pace here in Thun and got 5th place. The struts were shaking when the crowd was cheering for him! |
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| Tommy G has won here twice in a row already, but this year he could not make it happen again and complete the 3-peat. Yet, this foot plant on the curved wallride was awesome! |
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| Honestly, it was only a matter of time that Diego Caverzasi was going to stand on the podium. Luckily, it happened for him at The Swatch Rocket Air event. His gnarly tricks and consistency truly paid off. Congratulations, Diego! |
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| Max Fredriksson is attacking the FMB World Tour harder than ever this year. With a super solid list of new sponsors, he's pumped to show what he's really worth. Only 0.3 point back from the winner! |
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There can be only one King of the Jungle!
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 | The vibe during the competition was epic. We put on one hell of a show for this crowd and they gave us incredible support. Stoked to be atop the podium! - Nicholi Rogatkin |
Rogatkin tops the podium and celebrates with the boys!
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MENTIONS: @FMBA / @lunatyk / @flyingmetal
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Looked like an awesome event.
Have a great day!