Combating, street-style

FREESTYLE FOOTBALL

Amidst the record downpour that the City witnessed last Saturday, while most were trying to avoid slipping in the slick, a few young men taught them how to balance it right! 

The adrenaline rush was high as the contestants battled against each other to bag the first position at Red Bull Street Style 2013 Delhi qualifiers held at Blue Frog.
   The rules of the game were simple - 3-2-1. Three minutes, two players and one ball. These were followed by 16 aspiring freestylers who performed some extraordinary tricks with the football. Each participant performed for 30 seconds before passing the ball to his fellow participant. These were judged by - Chetan Mishra, DJ Mash and Manik Mishra.

After a long first round, the audience didn’t require much effort to guess the names of those who qualified for the next round. Since all were not as impressive, those who were even slightly better, stood out in the crowd. 

The second round was more interesting. It seemed as if the participants had reserved their handstands and difficult tricks for this round specifically. In an aggressive face-off, the eight contenders performed freestyle stunts by spinning the ball on their head and over their arms; balancing it between their legs while attempting somersaults and even with the help of a glass or Redbull can!

While Aditya’s cool attitude made a mark, Henry’s thought-through moves brought him more points. Both made it to the semi-finals along with the good-looking Mark and the exuberant Michael. In a head-to-head battle, while Aditya faced Michael, Henry was placed against Mark. Both Aditya and Michael were too good and didn’t leave even a single chance to impress the judges. The final match between Henry and Mark was difficult to decide in one go and thus the judges asked for a second face-off.

Henry was exceptionally good at his performance but Mark seemed to have gathered more audience support and made less mistakes. Mark was announced as the winner and will battle other finalists from India in Mumbai. The national winner will represent India in the Red Bull Street Style World Final in September 2013, in Japan!

Enthralled by the performances, judge DJ Mash said, “I am thrilled to see such potential in these kids! This event is a perfect platform for budding street style footballers to showcase their showmanship and talent! These guys today have showcased some impressive moves and manoeuvres; and I am glad to have witnessed it firsthand.”