#STIHL Timbersports®
Australian Champions of The Original Extreme Sport head to Marseille, France to take on the worlds best
MAY 2018
The Champions Trophy and Rookie World Championship of the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® Series, the world’s leading logger sports competition, lit up Marseille, France on 26 May 2018. Mitch Argent from Blackbutt, Queensland and Daniel Gurr from Deloraine in Tasmania went head-to-head against the world’s elite in front of the museum complex MuCEM building next to the city’s beautiful harbour. Argent’s competitors included the reigning world champion Jason Wynyard from New Zealand, French champion Pierre Puybaret and ten more top athletes from Europe and around the world in the head line event, the Champions Trophy.
The STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® Champions Trophy saw the world’s best logger sports athletes do battle with razor-sharp axes and saws in a series of disciplines requiring power, precision and endurance. Only the best qualified for what is regarded as the sport’s toughest competition. In 2018 the event headed to France for the first time and took place on 26 May in front of the MuCEM in Marseille. Set against the stunning backdrop of the city’s beautiful harbour, the elite international athletes went head-to-head in four consecutive disciplines held in a knockout format. The top competitors managed to chop through the four blocks of wood in less than a minute.
Argent eyes first individual STIHL TIMBERSPORTS World crown
Mitch Argent qualified for the Champions Trophy by winning the Australian Champions Trophy held at the Sydney Entertainment Quarter. Argent set the second fastest time in qualifying before navigating the knockout rounds where he beat the 2016 World Champion Brayden Meyer in the semi-finals, before taking down three time and reigning World Champion Brad De Losa in a thrilling final in front of hundreds of fans. The trip to Europe was not his first after representing the Australian Chopperoos in the past 3 Team World Championships and helping win Gold in 2016 and 2017, but this was his first appearance in any of the individual competitions. “It’s been a great honour to represent Australia at the last 3 world championships with the Chopperoos, but the individual competitions are what everyone wants to be in. It’s not going to be easy to beat the best in the world, but on my day I’m sure I’ve got what it takes to get the win and bring the gold back home”.
Competing for France, the national Champion of 2017, Pierre Puybaret from the Rhône-Alpes region. Puybaret has several national titles as well as five of six possible national discipline records to his name. At the 2017 Individual World Championship he took a good sixth place. The Frenchman had his eyes firmly set on a strong performance at the Champions Trophy in Marseille: “I always look forward to testing myself against other athletes. Everyone competing in Marseille will be in great shape, both physically and mentally. Of course, performing in front of a home crowd will give me that extra little bit of motivation.”
Also in Marseille: The reigning World Champion Jason Wynyard from New Zealand and the top athletes from Canada and the Czech Republic, all of them favorites. Furthermore athletes from the U.S.A., Poland, Italy, Sweden, Austria and the United Kingdom competed at the Champions Trophy.
At the STIHL TIMBERSPORTS® Champions Trophy the competitors did battle in the following four disciplines: Stock Saw, Underhand Chop, Single Buck and Standing Block Chop. Each discipline is based on traditional logger work. For the world’s best STIHL TIMBERSPORTS athletes, the Champions Trophy was the ultimate test of power and fitness. When the pressure was on, they needed to dig deep, perform consistently and hold their nerve throughout the four disciplines in order to be in with a chance of victory.
Rookie World Championship also held in Marseille
Alongside with the Champions Trophy, the Rookie World Championship took place in the same venue. The world’s best up-and-coming logger sports athletes from all over the world went head-to-head in Marseille. Representing Australia, Daniel Gurr from Deloraine, Tasmania.
Daniel qualified for the Rookie World Championship by last year’s Australian Rookie Cup held at Albert Park, Melbourne.
Mitch and Daniel attended a 2 day training camp based at the STIHL TIMBERPORTS European training facility in Hallen, Holland before travelling to Marseille for their respective championships.
Livestream:
A livestream of both events is available at www.stihl-timbersports.com and www.youtube.com/user/STIHLTIMBERSPORTStv.
Dates:
Rookie World Championship: (Daniel Gurr competing for Australia)
Australia – SAT 26 May 2018, from 23:45 AEST
France – 26 May 2018, from 16:00
Champions Trophy: (Mitch Argent competing ofr Australia)
Australia – SUN 27 May 2018, from 03:00 AEST
France – 26 May 2018, from 19:00
Location:
MuCEM, Esplanade J4, 13002 Marseille, France
Timbersports is coming to the Gold Coast! Learn more here.
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