Finnish skaters beat the clock - and the cold!

The ice cross downhill qualifier at Serena, host venue for the first race of the Ice Cross Downhill World Championship 2014, was raced in very cold conditions, but the freezing weather did not slow down the participants with some excellent times and performances.

The biggest surprise in the qualifier was well-known Finnish actor Mikko Leppilampi proving his ice cross downhill skills and stopping the clock at just 26.75 seconds. Leppilampi took eighth place in the qualifier which proceeds the first Red Bull Crashed Ice event of the year at Serena, in Espoo - a 30-minute drive from the capital, Helsinki.

Watch the first race of the new season from Finland, live on redbullcrashedice.com, from 4pm (CET) on Saturday, February 1.

Having got a taste for the sport, Leppilampi feels he might have done even better! "After the first run I knew that in the best-case scenario I could have a chance to even be at the top of the list. In the second run I stumbled a bit and it lost me a couple of seconds."

Leppilampi seems to be a natural talent in the sport - it was only his third time on the icy track! "This is just an awesome sport! After a hosting job I became a fan of the sport and the national team guys dared me to participate. We'll see in the World Championship race!"

Besides Leppilampi, we saw competitors from as far away as Chile and Japan. The fastest time was posted by Miika Miettinen, from Suomussalmi, with a time of 25.63. The only female member of the Finnish national team, Salla Kyhälä, did a good run also and her time of 27.84 secured her a spot in the final.

The 30 fastest skaters from Saturday's qualifier will take their place in the first race of the new season on February 1 as Finland looks to prove it has the toughest skaters in the world.

"We saw some pretty good performances today despite the cold weather. There were a few athletes better than the others, so I think we'll have a good party at the World Championship race," said Finland's former Ice Cross Downhill World Champion, Arttu Pihlainen.

For more photos head to Red Bull Crashed Ice's official Facebook page.

Full results from the Red Bull Crashed Ice qualifier at Serena on 18.1.2014: