There is sauna and there is “sauna nuts” where heat gladiators challenge themselves to a match of heat. This is similar to an eating contest of Twinkies where the contestants try to eat as many Twinkies in 2 minutes. But a sauna’s heat is a force not to be reckoned with.

Did you know, that sauna bathing is a very popular past-time in Finland? Any sauna gladiator would know that Finland has an estimated 1.6 million saunas for a population of 5 million.

Can you believe that anyone is stupid enough to go into a 100 °C where they splash cold water over a piercing hot stove every few minutes and the last man standing is the winner!

Sitting on the left, is Vladimir Ladyzhenskiy, at the mens final at the Sauna World Championships in August 2010. The final two competitors had to be removed by force from the sauna. Ladyzhenskiy was rushed to a hospital after being burned during the competition and he was declared dead on arrival.