Port Vila, Vanuatu (PressExposure) August 18, 2010 -- Even though the human body is not designed to cope with temperatures anywhere near boiling point, contestants in the World Sauna Championship still tried to beat the odds.
Vladimir Ladyzhensky, a Russian finalist died after entering the World Sauna Championships. According to the organizers, the event was put on hold.
During the competition, the finalists were made to endure temperatures of 230 degrees Fahrenheit (110 degrees Celsius) for as long as they could. Both Russia's Ladyzhensky and Finland's Timo Kaukonen, were rushed to hospital after collapsing.
Both men had endured seven minutes in the sauna before they were pulled out, having received terrible burns and suffering from trauma. Ladyzhensky died on the way to the hospital, while Kaukonen, who had won the competition 5 times, was in a critical but stable condition.
The Norwegian newspaper, the Verden Gang, reported that just a few minutes before the finals, Kaukoene had said that the saunas being used for the 2010 championship, were a lot more severe than the saunas used in previous competitions.
The Sauna Competition, which attracted more than hundred thirty participants, is an annual endurance event, which has been held in Heinola, Finland, since 1999. There has, however, never been any major prize for being the champion of the world.
While the authorities have begun an investigation, the organizer of the event, Ossi Arvela, said "All the rules were followed and there was enough first aid personnel. All the competitors needed to sign in to the competition with a doctor's certificate, prior to entering the competition."
The event developed from an unofficial sauna-sitting competition that resulted in a ban from a swimming hall in Heinola. It eventually attracted entrants from twenty countries from across globe.
The event started with preliminary rounds, leading up to the finals, where the top six women and men would find out who could remain in the sauna the longest.
The commencing temperature in the men's competition was 110 degrees centigrade. Half a liter of water was poured on the stove every 30 seconds. The winner was the last person to stay in the sauna and walk out without outside assistance.
The host country usually reigned in the event, as only one foreign contestant ever made it into the finals in the men's competition. The first non-Finnish winner in the women's competition was Natallia Tryfanava from Belarus, in 2003.
With an estimated 40 million audience in Japan alone, the World Sauna Championships were televised in 2004.
Sauna bathing in extreme conditions is recognized as a severe health risk, with all competitors signing a form, agreeing to not take legal action against the organizers.
Following the death and near-death of the two finalists, the organizers announced they did not expect any further championships to be held.
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