The Italian ultra-runner, famous all over the world for his extreme adventures, is a new UYN athlete!

The collaboration with our research and development center AREAS (Academy for Research and Engineering in Apparel and Sport) has already begun with the aim of developing the perfect equipment for a new record: to be the first man in history to run for 630 km on the frozen surface of Lake Bajkal, in the middle of Siberian winter. The Italian athlete will also carry throughout the world his message in favor of sport and sustainability: values in which we have always identified.

Paolo Venturini: history of a record-breaking ultrarunner

Born in Padua in 1968, Paolo Venturini is a police superintendent and ultrarunner of the Fiamme Oro, the sports group of the State Police. His career as an athlete is uncommon, as uncommon is his tenacity and ability to challenge the limits. This is proven by the more than 20 ultramarathons (races longer than 42 km) in which he has taken part and the numerous extreme adventures that have made him a source of inspiration all over the world. Two primates, in particular, stand out in his extraordinary track record. On July 19, 2017 Paolo ran in the Iranian desert of Dasht-e Lut, the hottest place in the world during the hottest time of the year: 75 km from the slopes of the Gandon Berian plateau to the village of Shafiabad; 11 hours and 57 minutes at an average temperature of 67° and a constant wind of 55 km/h. From extreme heat, to extreme cold. On January 20, 2019, the Italian ultrarunner became the first man to run 39 km in the Republic of Sakha Jakutia (northeastern Siberia), the coldest populated place in the world, at a prohibitive temperature of 52.6° below zero.

Bajkal Infinity Ice, the new venture with UYN

Despite these amazing ventures, Paolo is never tired of challenges. Together with UYN, the ultra-athlete has started a new, extraordinary project: Bajkal Infinity Ice. Once again facing the extreme cold, Paolo will travel to Siberia to Lake Bajkal, one of the seven wonders of Russia and part of the UNESCO World Heritage. During the very cold winter, in the first months of 2022, he will face the cold and the wind that transforms the surface of the lake into an immense sheet of ice, in a solo race of 630 km.

For us at UYN, this is an important test bench and an opportunity to create and test new technologies that allow the athletes to face the most hostile climates in maximum comfort.

For science and the environment

During the entire duration of the Bajkal Infinity Ice project, Paolo will be monitored by a specialized medical team that will record in the field how the human body reacts to the most extreme temperatures. The ultra-athlete will also be followed by a television crew that will not only document the natural beauty of one of the world’s most remote places, but also shed light on the threat of global warming that looms over the planet’s largest supply of fresh water. Climate change is dangerously thinning the ice sheet on Lake Bajkal with the real risk that, in a few years, no one will be able to attempt the feat Paolo is planning.