A Lithuanian man and his wife have won the world wife carrying title for a second year running.
Men must leap over timber and wade through waist-high water to carry their wives and win their other half’s weight in beer.
Vytautas Kirkliauskas and his wife Neringa Kirkliauskiene cleared a grueling 253.5 meter obstacle course in 1 minute and 6.72 seconds.
Vytautas Kirkliauskas and his wife Neringa Kirkliauskiene, above, won the world wife carrying title for a second year running. Along with the pride that comes from being crowned world champions, the couple also returns home with his wife’s weight in beer
That was just a tenth of a second ahead of former six-time world champion, Finland’s Taisto Miettinen and his new partner Katja Kovanen.
‘After the second obstacle I thought I wouldn’t make, but it’s a great result’ Kirkliauskas said, adding ‘my wife, she is the best.’
Couples from over a dozen countries, including Australia, France and Germany, took part in the annual race in Sonkajarvi, Finland, 300 miles north of Helsinki, the capital.
The Lithuanian couple are pictured wading through the waist-high water as Neringa gets splashed with water. The rules stipulate that participants must have fun during the race, but that doesn’t stop them taking the race very seriously
The rules stipulate that the woman must be over 17 years of age and weigh at least 108 pounds.
Despite the event’s name, couples don’t have to be married, and organizers say male contestants could ‘steal a neighbor’s wife’ if they don’t have a female companion.
The event is inspired by a Finnish legend, ‘Ronkainen the Robber.’ In the 19th century tale, a gang pillages villages and steals the women.
The length of the obstacle course is said to be the distance needed to avoid being shot by pursuers.
The Lithuanian couple’s win was just a tenth of a second ahead of former six-time world champion Taisto Miettinen and his new partner Katja Kovanen, pictured above, from Finland
Taisto Miettinen and his new partner Katja Kovanen are pictured scaling the timber. Men must leap over timber and wade through waist-high water to carry their wives in the annual race
British entrant Robert McCaffrey, who has previously organised a UK version of the race, is pictured in Union Jack colours as he carries Venla Koistinen from Finland on his shoulders
Revived in 1992, the tradition sees men carrying their teammate in various ways, though a popular method is for the woman to hang upside-down on the back on the male contestant with her legs around his shoulders.
The popularity of wife carrying races has spread outside Finnish borders, with national competitions held in Australia, Poland, England and the United States.
Even China has announced it will be organizing its first national edition in August with the winners traveling to Finland to compete in the world championships in 2020.
‘It’s summertime and we just want to have some fun together,’ said Eero Pitkanen, the competition’s founder.
‘It’s great to see our small town put on the map because of this.’
The rules stipulate that participants must have fun during the race, but that doesn’t stop them taking the race very seriously.
Along with the pride that comes from being crowned world champions, the couple also returns home with the wife’s weight in beer.
‘The heavier the wife, the more beer for them,’ said Pitkanen.
British competitors Chris Hepworth and Tanisha Prince took part in the race in Sonkajarvi, Finland. Couples from over a dozen countries, including Australia, France and Germany, took part in the annual race