Meet the women breaking world records in lumberjack sports

What the report says

BBC World News reports that women’s participation in lumberjack sports is growing, highlighted by multiple records set at the annual Lumberjack World Championships in Hayward, Wisconsin, over the weekend. The event, hosted by Hayward since 1960, features disciplines including logrolling, chopping, sawing and speed climbing. This year’s field included 40 women and 66 men from the United States and abroad.

Karolina Urbanova, a 24-year-old from the Czech Republic, set two women’s chopping records. In the Women’s Standing Block event, she cut through a 9in white pine block in 19.38 seconds, beating the prior mark of 21.17 seconds. In the Women’s Underhand Chop, she finished an 11in block in 21.28 seconds, improving on the previous 24.26-second record. Urbanova told the BBC she discovered the sport as a teenager after a neighbour introduced her family to it, at a time when few women in Europe were competing.

Another record went to Hayward native Meredith Ingbretson, who won the Women’s Boom Run in 13.78 seconds, just ahead of the former 13.98-second standard. Ingbretson has been involved in logrolling since childhood in a town with deep timber-industry roots and later added sawing and chopping events.

Samantha LaSalle, event director of the Lumberjack World Championships, told the BBC the number of female competitors has more than trebled over 30 years. She said women were initially limited to logrolling at the championships, with chopping and sawing opportunities added over time as more competitors reached a high level. The BBC also notes that prize money is modest, with category winners in Wisconsin receiving $1,000, so competitors often rely on host families and a close international community.