Mini lands on its feet

The iconic car has taken to the quarter pipe to set a new backflip record at a French ski resort that served as a venue for the 1992 Winter Olympics.

In an essentially gratuitous yet nevertheless breathtaking publicity stunt, a specially adapted Mini set about educating snowboarders at the French ski resort of Tignes in the ways of grabbing air and performing a backflip.

The stunt, performed by extreme sportsman Guerlain Chicherit, will be duly noted in the Guinness Book of World Records as the first car backflip using a static ramp and is the latest incredible achievement to add to the Frenchman's CV. The 34-year-old is also a four-time world freestyle skiing champion, has won the French rally championship twice and was part of the X-raid Team that led a Mini ALL4 to consecutive Dakar Rally wins in 2012 and 2013.

The backflip is the latest in a list of world record attempts that Mini and its owner BMW have attempted over the past 12 months to celebrate the diminutive car's continued success. In November, 28 UK gym members managed to squeeze into the tiny three-door hatchback and in doing so went one better than the existing record of 27, set in 2011.

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