male gaze

Male Gaze: Iouri Podladtchikov’s Impressive Bag of Tricks

Photo: Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

Though spring officially started yesterday and March Madness is currently ravaging the United States, Europe still appears to have its mind dead-set on winter: The 2013 X Games in Tignes, France, began yesterday. And while we’re all itching for some sun, we have no problem watching daredevils strapped to snowboards catching air and doing hair-raising spins, flips, and grabs straight off of a gigantic icy half-pipe. The lone boarder who caught our eyes, with his very own icy-blue ones, was a man who goes by iPod (a.k.a. Iouri Podladtchikov). The Russian-born boarder from Switzerland also managed to land the biggest trick of the night. The athlete with a steely gaze, killer bone structure, and adorable smile landed the much-hyped cab double cork 1440 (okay, someone told us so) that he’s since dubbed the “YOLO Flip.” He then yelled, “Rock and roll, baby!” and proceeded to fling his snowboard into the crowd — just like a rock star would. 

Male Gaze: Iouri Podladtchikov’s Bag of Tricks