PyeongChang 2018 bronze medallist Scotty James, young gun World Record holder Valentino Guseli and Youth Olympic Winter Games silver medallist Emily Arthur will be leading the charge for the green and gold.

Selected for his fourth Olympic Winter Games, Scotty James is a 3-time World Champion and brings excellent form having won the gold medal at the X-Games in Aspen in January. He also has fond memories of this Genting Snow Park halfpipe in Beijing after winning there in 2020. Look out for his trademark 'backside 1260', a mainstay for the Warrandyte local.

“I feel really good. I’ve had a really good lead up, really good practices and now I come here, enjoy being in the green and gold, enjoy the pride and enjoy the patriotism and do what I love to do.”

“I’ve had a good time here winning the test event two years ago and that naturally helps me build momentum. I feel really good riding here and I’m getting used to the weather and the temperature too.

“Now I’m just mapping out my run. It rides like a halfpipe and there are no surprises.”

Sixteen-year-old debutant Valentino Guseli is the new kid on the block who made his World Cup debut in 2021 as a 15-year-old, wowing the judges as the top seed into the finals. Later that year, Valentino, known for his amplitude in the pipe, became a World Record holder by souring 7.3m into the air. Recent form has seen him record top 5 placings at World Class events.

Valentino is confident that the faultless halfpipe will work in his favour.

“The pipe is perfect, so I think you’re going to see a lot of good riding. It’s going to be very entertaining to watch, and very fun to do.

“This pipe is so perfect so I’m definitely going to push as hard as I can. It suits the amplitude style of riding, which is definitely what I want to do.

“The Olympics is a really big comp so I’m pushing myself to go as big, be as clean and do the most technical tricks that I can, to an audience that hasn’t really seen it yet. I want to inspire people to do what I do.”

The Japanese team brings a strong contingent to the men’s event, including 2018 silver medallist Ayumu Hirano, who recently landed the first 'triple cork' manoeuvre in competition and 2021 World Champion Yuto Totsuka who's also bidding for the top prize.

Five-time Olympian and arguably the world's most famous snowboarder Shaun White announced his retirement last week and hopes to leave his mark with another Olympic medal in his remarkable career.

In the women's event 2016 Youth Winter Olympics silver medallist Emily Arthur makes her second Olympic Winter Games appearance in Beijing after a finals appearance in 2018.

The 22-year-old has recorded a series of top ten placings including the 2021 World Championships, and is now piecing together her run.

“It took me a little bit to get used to the halfpipe this morning, but when I got the hang of it, it felt really good in there. The snow is grippy and not icey which is what we want.

“The plan is to piece together my run as I go through the days. I want to focus on amplitude and going big, so we were running that pretty hard today.

“We’ve got that down now so I’m working on the tricks now. I’m really excited.”

21-year-old American Snowboarder Chloe Kim hopes to repeat her dominance in the halfpipe with back-to-back Olympic titles in Beijing.

Chris Hocking

#HaveAGo