Yesterday, Klaipėda residents had the opportunity to enjoy an extraordinary spectacle - a water formula in the Danube River. The powerful water formula piloted by Edgaras Riabkas, twice European champion, was showing its capabilities here for a reason - together with the huge F2 United team, the F2 Water Formula World Championship trailer was filmed.
Tomas Skamaročius, the director of the F2 World Championship broadcast, says that this trailer took weeks to coordinate. For the formula to fly down the narrow Danube River seemed like a crazy idea at first. But the team wanted the best possible spectacle for the audience and a spectacular clip, so they realised that it was definitely possible to realise this idea. Not only did the municipality, the port authority, the Danube River Authority, but also the police were involved. Safety was a priority for the whole team, so what the athlete did on the water had to be first and foremost not to endanger him and others.
"The event was spectacular. We did six swims, which we filmed. The emotions were overwhelming - the thundering sound of the engine, the speed, the narrow channel - it gave everyone a huge adrenaline rush. We used twelve cameras and a high-speed drone that can reach speeds of 180 km/h, so the result will be unreal and the adrenaline will make the audience's skin crawl," says Tomas Skamaročius, who directed the filming.
Even the 200 km/h water-powered race car was not able to show its full speed to the people of Klaipėda for safety reasons. As the pilot of the water car himself says, when the speed exceeds 100 km/h, the chances of the car taking off or flipping over immediately increase. However, when Riabko reached 172 km/h on the water, the spectacle was spectacular and attracted thousands of people to the shore.
"We had the preparation to film this episode. I'm sure there was a lot of anxiety in the beginning, because the river is very narrow, there are a lot of boats around, you don't know what to expect, and there are two curves. But the police officers who controlled the traffic on the river were a big help here. I was very pleasantly surprised to see thousands of people on the shore watching me. Even though we were filming a trailer, I felt like I was at an event where I had to put on a show. Usually in a race with twenty cars, the eyes of the spectators are never on you alone, so this time I felt special - it was a really exciting moment," says Edgar Riabko.
The Chief Producer of ELITAZ, the creative house organising the F2 Water Formula World Championship, promises a spectacular show: 'This will be the third year in a row that the championship is being held in Lithuania, and it is broadcast all over the world, with millions of fans watching it every year. It will be much more than just an adrenaline-fuelled race - it will be a meet-and-greet with the athletes, stories from the preparation and unique interviews with teams and their pilots from all over the world. We are ready to meet all the expectations of adrenaline and racing fans."
The F2 Water Formula Championship will take place on 12 - 13 August in Klaipeda Curonian Lagoon, Cruise Ship Terminal. Dozens of professionals from all over the world and our own Edgaras Riabko will compete for the title of World Champion. Pilots will be greeted, qualifiers will qualify, adrenaline will surge, millions of spectators will be drawn to the screens, and two days of entertainment will be on offer for the citizens of Klaipėda and the city's guests to experience a world-class Championship.
Photos by Domas Rimeika
