The Kiruna Snow Festival, which has existed since 1986, is widely known and ranks highly in the international travel magazines.
Various snow activities such as ice climbing, snow bathing, dog sledding, snow conversation, mobile sauna and snow circus take place here.
And the biggest draw: Kiruna's International Snow Sculpture Competition, which annually attracts artists from all over the world to the mining town.
- We are not the world's biggest festival, but we usually say that we are the coziest, and I think that what attracts many international guests is the strength of the authentic Arctic.
Here we have real snow without any chemicals, says Alex Olofsson.
Going to get through a 20 meter long pile of snow
But the highlight for many Kiruna residents is still the snow thrower race, which has returned since 2014. The idea of the sport is simple: The competitors have to get through a 20 meter long pile of snow with a height of about 40 centimeters.
The driver who gets through the pile of snow first wins the race and is crowned world champion.
- The people of Kiruna love it and the participants do their absolute best to win.
But why do you think the people of Kiruna are so fixated on this?
- Because we have turned around something that many may have thought was difficult.
Instead, shoveling snow will be fun and positive here, says Alex Olofsson.
The snow festival lasts until Sunday.
In the video, you see when the contestants fight their way through a 20-meter-long pile of snow