Klaus Polzer crowned Arc'teryx King of Dolomites 2016

One Italian town, two days of shooting, eight professional and 40 hobby photographers and endless possibilities to shoot and play. Last Sunday San Martino di Castrozza crowned the King of Dolomites in seven categories. Sverre Hjørnevik who came all the way from Norway won the Pro Action and Landscape category. Christoph Oberschneider took the best photo in the Pro Alpinism. The Wannabe winner Action and Landscape is Stephan Kothner, the best Wannabe Alpinism was shot by Andrea Costa. The crown for the overall category KOD 2016 Line in which amateurs and pros were competing together went to Klaus Polzer.

The fifth edition bolstered the Arc´teryx King of Dolomites once again as one of the premier photography freeride events of the winter. 150 talented photographers and riders from ten countries travelled to San Martino di Castrozza to get the best shot during two days. As in previous years everyone was inspired by the diversity and beauty of the landscape around and the hospitality and charm of San Martino, making the little Italian town the perfect base for creativity. The result was an impressive number of stunning pictures.

This did not make for an easy job for the jury who sat together for six hours to pick the seven winners. The intensive discussion was shaped by the distinct backgrounds of the judges merging high level sports, photography, artistic and cinematographic expertise. Freerider Stian Hagen (NOR), mountain and outdoor photographer Piotr Drożdż (POL) and director of photography Maxime Alexandre (ITA) adjudicated the photos based on athletic performance, riders’ style, emotions, scenic beauty of the Dolomitic context, composition and lighting.

The awards ceremony took place in the town center of San Martino on Sunday afternoon awarding the winners with cash prizes and technical freeride gear.

ARC’TERYX KING OF DOLOMITES WINNER: 2016 KOD Lines
"Lines have many forms and recipes. For this one take The Dolomites and sprinkle on some powder, a puff of wind, a fruitful search and smiles."
Klaus Polzer with rider Neil Williman

King of Action, PRO: Sverre Hjørnevik, rider Bard Oymar
King of Action, WANNABE: Stefan Kothner, rider Raphael Öttl

King of Landscape, PRO: Sverre Hjørnevik (NOR), riders Seb Mayer (F) & Bard Oymar (NOR)
King of Landscape, WANNABE: Stefan Kothner, rider Raphael Öttl

King of Alpinism, PRO: Christoph Oberschneider, riders Matthias Aigner & Lukas Oberschneider
King of Alpinism, WANNABE: Andrea Costa, athlete Tommaso Cardelli (ITA)

SPECIAL MENTIONS
Sebastian Dickenherr, rider Nonnemacher
Joris Lugtigheid, riders Krijn Grun + Jurgen Saurens
Francesco Russo, riders Alessandro Marchi, Dacide Gatti

TEAM 1 // Christoph Oberschneider. Riders: Matthias Aigner + Christoph Puggl
TEAM 2 // Klaus Polzer. Riders: Sebastian Huber + Neil Williman
TEAM 3 // Franz Walter. Riders: Hanna Finkel + Silvan Kaspar
TEAM 4 // Joris Lugtigheid. Riders: Krijn Grun + Jurgen Saurens
TEAM 5 // Johannes Strobel. Riders: Johanna Stålnacke + Tom Grant
TEAM 6 // Sverre Hjornevik. Riders: Bard Oymar + Pia Nic Gundersen
TEAM 7 // Riky Felderer. Riders: Paolo Marazzi + Paolo Pernigotti

Info: www.kingofdolomites.com