Paragliding
Three athletes: three unique approaches
Chrigel Maurer, Aaron Durogati and Celine Lorenz tell us how they’re prepping for Red Bull X-Alps 2025.
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They’re the featured athletes on this year’s Red Bull X-Alps poster – and they’re all training and looking forward to the race in different ways. For Chrigel Maurer (SUI1) the pressure is once again on to see if he can deliver a win for a ninth time against a field that is stronger than ever.
Red Bull X-Alps 2025 poster
© zooom
But as usual the athlete is the total professional – focusing on his training, optimizing equipment and doing gym work to prevent injury. “I will try to bring in all my experience of 15 years of training and competitions, but it is still not easy,” he says. “First of all, Red Bull X-Alps is an adventure. It’s a long race. You have to make hundreds of good decisions, every day. The level of the athletes is very high.”
Last year Chrigel succeeded in completing his project to climb all 82 4,000m peaks of the Alps. He says he’s now back in hike-and-fly race mode. “I'm optimizing strategies with my team to give me new motivation. There is also some potential to save some weight with my equipment – not much, but at least a bit! At the moment I invest my time with basic training in the gym and on touring skis.”
Aaron Durogati (ITA1) is also motivated by the desire to do well. This will be his seventh time but his best performance remains a sixth place ten years ago. Last year he placed eighth. He says he’s in top condition. “In the last two to three years I have been in really good shape. I was doing really well in every race except Red Bull X-Alps. So I still want to try to do well,” he says.
The key is to make good decisions and to stay in the air
“The key is to make good decisions and to stay in the air, even when it's not so nice to be in the air, because in the end, it's where you can really make a difference. You have to find this mindset to be able to find the best every day and push it to the maximum even when the weather is really difficult. In the air, you should not only try to survive – that’s the first goal – but really take advantage of being in the air, that's critical. That’s what Chrigel manages – he attacks.”
He says he’s training hard in the gym right at the moment, which is a lot easier now that his gym moved inside his house and is no longer in his garage. “Red Bull X-Alps is a unique adventure – not only an adventure, but a race and an adventure,” he adds.
In 2024 Celine has been active on the competition circuit.
© Celine Lorenz
The third star of the official Red Bull X-Alps poster is Celine Lorenz (GER2), who is competing for the second time as the only female in the line-up. She says she can’t wait to take on Red Bull X-Alps again. “For me, it’s the ultimate adventure – a mix of pushing limits, connecting with the mountains, and embracing the unexpected. Being the only female athlete this year is such an honor, and it motivates me even more to give it my all. Training has been intense, but it’s so rewarding to see progress every day.”
Celine recently placed 7th at the Paragliding World Cup Superfinal in Roldanillo, Colombia. She adds: “Red Bull X-Alps is more than just a race; it’s a chance to grow, to push beyond limits, and to experience something truly unforgettable.”
One month to go!
The route will be announced in exactly one month, on March 19! Stay tuned on our social channels (@redbullxalps) to not miss any updates.
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