FMB Diamond Series Starts this Weekend
March 24, 2015
So much good news! The winter season is being cut short with an all new Diamond stop kick starting the season in Rotorua, New Zealand, this weekend. The quest for a new FMB World Champion is about to begin and Crankworx Rotorua is the first of five FMB Diamond Series events. You can watch the action live on Redbull.com/bike and fmbworldtour.com on Sunday, March 29th from 0:30am to 4:00am (CEST). Take a look at the event trailer here: http://youtu.be/tHoIHtQjCpM
The slate has been wiped clean and the riders are about to begin their quest for the 2015 FMB World Championship at Crankworx Rotorua. The top 10 athletes from the 2014 ranking are automatically qualified for all Diamond stops, so the competition will be fierce. Here is the rider line up:
2014 Champion Brandon Semenuk (CAN) will be competing at Crankworx Rotorua but has decided not to defend his FMB title. Brandon has played a major role in progressing the sport of freeride mountain biking and the FMBA supports his decision. Brandon comments: “Over the last 3-4 years my focus has been moving away from contest and more towards film projects. At this point in my career I feel like I have more to accomplish with filming then I do at events; it’s my motivation at the moment. Saying that, this year I will not be taking apart in the FMB Diamond Series because I can not give it my full attention and will not be hitting every stop.“ Brandon has however signed up for the FMB World Tour in order to remain in the world ranking and also support TREK’s C3 Project factory team in the FMB Factory Team Ranking.
More big news: Martin Soderstrom is back! The King of steeze is healthy and rolling into Rotorua with high hopes of landing back on top. Will he whip his way on to the podium? Tune in LIVE on Sunday March 29th to find out! All the ‘toothgap’ fans out there will also be happy to see that 2013 FMB World Champion, Sam Pilgrim is expected to compete as well. The young gun, Nicholi Rogatkin from Boston (USA) finished in 6th overall in his rookie season last year. With the experience from 2014 now under his belt, Nicholi is gunning for a top spot.
With every new event comes a new course and this one is the brainchild of local ripper, Kelly McGarry. The greatly admired people’s champ has a knack for building and shaping true gems and expectations are high for Crankworx Rotorua. The course looks packed, fast and the jumps are huge! Every ingredient needed for an awesome FMB Diamond Event is there.
Save the date and tune in on Sunday, March 29th for the live webcast. Here are the viewing times:
SUNDAY, 29 MARCH, 12:30PM NZST
SATURDAY, 28 MARCH, 4:30PM PDT
SATURDAY, 28 MARCH, 7:30PM EDT
SUNDAY, 29 MARCH, 12:30AM CEST
SUNDAY, 29 MARCH, 10:30AM AEST
Post attached video URL; https://youtu.be/G72oFgGHsoM?list=UU0DT1FmkUaeDWyqOrPxMqgA