Sweatiest People in the World Sauna Championships
Some like it hot — SCORCHING hot — and they’re willing to suffer through the bowels of hell’s heat to prove their stamina as they vie for the title for the World Sauna Championship, an annual event held in Heinola, 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of Helsinki, Finland.
Male competitors sit in a sauna at the Sauna World Championships in Heinola, Finland.
Photo Reuters
160 men and women from 24 countries competed to prove they were man or woman enough to slowly poach themselves longer than anyone else in the 10th annual sauna championships over the weekend, with participants coming from as far afield as Gambia, Columbia, Canada, and China, each determined to prove their mettle.
Competitors endured the steaming, sweltering temperatures of 230° Fahrenheit (100° Celsius), as a pint (half liter) of water was poured on the sizzling stones every 30 seconds.
“The significance of one’s basic physical condition is emphasized every year, and liquid consumption must be well timed.” explains Ossi Arvela, the main organizer for the Sauna World Championship.
The rules are simple — you must sit upright, and if you can’t cut the heat, get out of the sauna. The last person remaining wins.
Photo AFP
“It wasn’t fun after 2 or 3 minutes.” said Arvela.
The Finns shattered their rivals’ hopes for the men’s division as Bjarne Hermansson sweated his way to glory outlasting his competitors in the heat for 18:15 minutes.
“I have been training a lot with my brother to achieve this win.” Hermansson said after he was crowned the 2008 Sauna Champion on Saturday.
Leila Kulin, also from Finland, sweated her way to the Women’s title as the country’s top sauna sitter with a time of 5:22 minutes for a bit of an upset, as Belarussians have frequently captured the women’s title.
People usually stay in a sauna for about 5 minutes at a time, without the extreme humidity of the contest saunas.
Participants are typically monitored closely to ensure there are no medical emergencies, with medics standing by just in case.
When it’s too hot people cannot sit straight and start moving their hands, which is a cue to eliminate them from the competition for safety sake.
Photo Piltii
“The main rules have not changed since the beginning of the competition 10 years ago. We have 6 men or women sitting inside the sauna (on each round) and the winner is the last one to leave.” Arvela said.
“There are no world records … we cannot control all the factors like the temperature of the sauna or the water thrown into the stove.” Arvela said. When the championship started in 1999, five countries and 60 contestants participated.
The town has already established a reputation for hosting unusual international competitions, including karaoke singing, doughnut-eating, wife-carrying, mosquito-killing, and mud soccer championships.
Finnish Sauna Society’s premises in Lauttasaari. Photo Wili Hybrid
Where saunas are about as plentiful as cars and a part of everyday life, taking a sauna is one of Finland’s favorite pastimes with an estimated 2 million saunas catering to a population of a little over 5 million. About 80 to 100 years ago it was even normal for people to be born in saunas in the countryside.
Sources: Metro and Helsinki Times
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lol. Your writing on this is pretty funny. There are some really wild sports out there thanks for sharing and adding to my ‘useless knowledge’ bank. Great writing!!!
Hehehe, useless knowledge can be more fun than many would care to openly admit
OMG, can you imagine the smell in that room? If i was there…i would pass out in 15 secs….seriously….rofl….nice useless info though
That’s so interesting! I would have never guessed such a competition even existed..
Those guys look miserable!
Great competition – I love weird contests like this. I may even enter myself some time…
I find this story informative, keep up the great blogging!!
I know they have medics on hand, but I just can’t stop thinking about how bad that has to be for the body!!!! I’d never make it, I’m too wimpy.
Thanks to all for your comments, and please accept my apologies for not replying, as I just had surgery last Tuesday, and do not have the strength or energy to reply.
I am sorry to hear that Deborah. I hope that you can recover as soon as possible.
People have too much time on their hands these days.
My question is how in the world do people come up with these bizarre competitions, and how do they find people to compete in them.
I bet the winner is really proud of himself – being able to last the longest sat down in a sweat box. It must be quite dangerous but what is the point? Oh well, each to their own.
Finally, a sport I could medal in.
These fellas look like complete nutters! I have a sauna in my house but I’ve never thought of staying in it until I melt! Saunas should be a place to relax and unwind not an endurance test!
they make anything an endurance ’sport’ now a days! all that’s needed are extreme conditions and competitive spirit… did you ever watch the Endurance the Japanese game show.?
The Finnish Sauna Society is aghast at the whole idea and have denounced it. They think it’s unhealthy and dangerous (the starter temperature is 230 degrees F and goes up every 30 seconds from there). But this party isn’t just a nutter’s competition; bathers are willing to bake to lobster-red for several minutes in order to win a week’s vacation in some exotic — and hot — locale like Morocco.
I guess it all depends upon how closely the environment is monitored. I have a friend in Germany who uses a sauna regularly, and says that it’s thought to be quite healthy there.
that it’s thought to be quite healthy there.
they make anything an endurance ’sport’ now a days! all that’s needed are extreme conditions and competitive spirit
Great how do I enter.
I usually spend 15 mins in a sauna almost everyday temperature is 100-110 degrees celsius about 60 humidity. Thats after a gym workout. I do however drink lots during the sauna session.
I wonder how much water you are allowed before the competition and if taking a shower was permited.
These two factors could make a huge difference.
Mark, This was held last August. I’ve attempted to find out contact information for the organization, but haven’t been successful. It may just take spending a little more time doing searches, but if you’re serious, try searching for the World Sauna Championship organization in Heinola.
People enter from numerous other countries for the championships, so there must be a means of contact for them.
ohh cool!How endurable are the guys who win the championships!!
Cool championships.
.-= Dikkat Çekenler´s last blog ..Akılda Kalanlar – 23.07.2009 =-.