Minnesotans who joined tens of thousands of visitors gathered for the internationally ranked Red Bull Crashed Ice championships in St. Paul had a chance to cheer on Twin Cities skater Cameron Naasz of Lakeville — and they did so as he sped to an early lead from the outset, scrappingall the way down the icy race course and first across the finish line.
Naasz, 26, became the first American, and the first Minnesotan, to win the world championship, according to results posted by race organizers on the Crashed Ice website Saturday night.
Naasz made the daring run in 30.24 seconds, edging out Canada's Scott Croxall by just inches for the win, according to the website results. It said it was Naasz's third Crashed Ice win this season.
Another Canadian skater, Jacqueline Legere, took the women's championship title.
The Crashed Ice event had been expected to draw as many as 140,000 visitors, organizers said. Spring-like weather in the high 40s on what had been a record-setting mild day made for perfect conditions on St. Paul's Cathedral Hill for cheering on the hometown star.
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