Markus Eder Named the New FIAT Freestyle Team Rider

• One of Europe’s top freeskiers has joined the FIAT Freestyle Team, the project Fiat Group Automobiles supports and that brings together some of the athletes most representative of action sports
• Markus Eder completes the team created in 2004 made up of the champions Stefano Munari (snowboard), Marco Grigis (snowboard), Daniel Cardone (skateboard) and Stefan Lantschner (BMX)
• The FIAT Freestyle Team-customised Fiat Freemont 2.0 MultiJet II 170 HP AWD will accompany this athlete from Brunico in his travels through the mountains and in town

Considered one of Europe’s best freeskiers, Markus Eder has joined the team that will celebrate its tenth anniversary in 2014 together with Stefano Munari (snowboard), Marco Grigis (snowboard), Daniel Cardone (skateboard) and Stefan Lantschner (BMX).

The young athlete - born in 1990 - is a native of Brunico (Bolzano), Italy, and started to ski at the early age of three. He made a name for himself owing to his uncommon talent from the very beginning, but the real turning point arrived for him when he decided to put on his first pair of freestyle skis. From that moment on he started to accumulate a series of successes at all the major Italian competitions and to achieve good results on the European level. He sealed his reputation as a freeskiing star in 2010 when he won the ’Nine Knights’, beating the top riders in the world notwithstanding the fact that it was his racing debut.

The years that followed were a succession of positive results not only in freestyle events, but also in the leading freeride competitions, including the World Heli Challenge that he won in 2012 and the Freeride World Tour, in which Eder won the Italian leg at Courmayeur in 2013.

In addition to getting ready for the most important freestyle events, today Eder is training with the Italian National Team to qualify for the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games in the slopestyle category.

Starting today Markus Eder will have a new ally in his brilliant sports career, a FIAT Freestyle Team-customised Fiat Freemont 4x4 that will accompany him in his travels through the mountains and in town.

Equipped with an outstanding 170 HP AWD 2.0 MultiJet II with automatic transmission, the car given to Markus Eder has an “on-demand” active All-Wheel-Drive (AWD) system with electronic control unit whose sensors detect the grip of the four wheels and decide when to transfer drive to the rear axle. The system intervenes on surfaces where the wheels may not have good grip (mud, snow, ice...) to ensure maximum traction and no limits to the routes the vehicle can take, or in the case of asphalt surfaces, to ensure additional traction and greater safety on bends. Specifically, the electronic system modulates torque transfer through the use of the electronically controlled coupling (ECC). Since it only operates when necessary, the system contributes to efficiently limiting fuel consumption.

The AWD is combined with a six-speed automatic transmission that guarantees faster acceleration from standstill (kick-down function) as well as a feeling of fluidity, resulting in maximum comfort for passengers when driving. With automatic transmission, the driver can choose between using the sequential Autostick mode and engaging the desired gear or leaving the electronic transmission control unit to establish the most suitable ratio.

The addition of Eder to the team once again confirms the effort that the FIAT Freestyle Team puts into promoting the world of action sports and the ongoing backing it gives to the young people that represent top Italian talent around the world. To find out more about the world of the FIAT Freestyle Team, go to the official website www.fiatfreestyleteam.com and the Facebook/FiatFreestyleTeam fan page.