FREESTYLE SKIING: Updates from the FIS Freestyle Skiing World Cup/ Winter Games New Zealand at Cardrona.

Ski Slopestyle

Day nine of the Winter Games NZ 2013 saw more bluebird skies at Cardrona for the FIS Freestyle Skiing World Cup Slopestyle qualifying. A total of 16 men and 8 women progressed to Sunday’s finals drawn mostly from the USA and Scandinavia. They include the reigning men and women’s overall champions on the AFP World Tour, American Gus Kenworthy and Tiril Sjåstad Christiansen of Norway.

Both finals are must-see events with athletes looking to take their runs up a notch. The men’s final features the four best freeski slopestyle athletes in the world – Nick Goepper (USA), Russ Henshaw (AUS), James ‘Woodsy’ Woods (GBR) and Kenworthy – plus 11 of the top 20 from the 2012-13 AFP World Tour, reaffirming the Association of Freeskiing Professionals’ decision to award this Winter Games NZ event Platinum Level Sanctioning.

Australia's other competitors Boen Ferguson and Jordan Houghton failed to make the final after finishing 60th and 72nd respectively.

Kenworthy was consistently excellent scoring 91.20 and 86.20 on his two runs. Joining him and the rest of the top four in the men’s final are fellow Americans McRae Williams (who scored highest overall with 92.60), Lyman Currier and Willie Borm, Sweden’s Henrik Harlaut, Jesper Tjader and Oscar Wester, Norwegian skiers Per Kristian Hunder, Johan Berg and Oystein Braaten, Antti Ollila from Finland, Canada’s Noah Morrison and Benedikt Mayr from Germany.

Tiril Sjåstad Christiansen was the first woman dropping in and immediately stamped her mark on the comp with a score of 89.00 that only she was able to beat with a stomping second run of 90.6. Lisa Zimmermann from Germany qualified second with 87.40 followed by USA’s Devin Logan who continued her great form after winning halfpipe gold on Saturday with a first run score of 81.40.

Other women qualifiers, in order of best scores, are Eveline Bhend (SUI), Dania Assaly (CAN), Maggie Voisin (USA), Dara Howell (CAN) and Anna Vincenti (GBR). New Zealand’s Anna Willcox-Silfverberg finished 19th from 22 skiers.

No Kiwi men made their final. Jossi and Beau-James Wells finished 9th and 27th respectively out of 28 skiers in heat two. Beau-James stuck both his runs and looked impressive but Jossi took a fall off the last kicker of his first run which he thought may have damaged his gear causing him to lose a ski half way through his second.

Byron Wells did not compete at the Games due to injury but the future looks bright for youngest brother, Jackson who finished his first ever World Cup event in the top half of heat one just weeks after turning 15, the minimum age for FIS World Cup competitors.

Head judge, Greg Tuscher said: “The course allowed most of the riders to put down some really good runs. It was a really high level; all the best riders were here. It's a really good comp and the weather was nice so they could really express themselves.”
 
The Winter Games NZ 2013 continues tomorrow (Saturday) with the FIS Snowboard Halfpipe World Cup semi-finals and finals at Cardrona.

Ski Halfpipe

Early fog meant a slight delay to the start of today’s qualification heats for the FIS Freestyle Skiing World Cup Halfpipe at the Winter Games NZ today.

In the women’s heat, American Angeli Vanlaanen qualified first with an amazing score of 91.00 starting with back-to-back left and right 540 safety into a left 720 safety, switch right 360, mute grab and finishing with a left ally-oop 360 safety.
 
She finished a full three points ahead of Japan’s Ayana Onozuka with Nina Ragettli of Switzerland third with 85.20. The other qualifiers included New Zealand’s Janina Kuzma and US stars, Jamie Crane-Mauzy who finished second in halfpipe on the 2012-13 AFP World Tour, and Devin Logan who won all three freeskiing events at Winter Games NZ 2011 and was making her first competition appearance here after a long-term injury.
 
Australia's Amy Sheehan took the final qualifying place with 67.60 to ensure a double family celebration as her brother, Lyndon, who skis for New Zealand qualified second overall in the men's event.

Australia's other Olympic hopeful Davina Williams just missed out on a finals berth, finishing 16th on 58.80.

Finals update

Poor visibility meant just one run for both men and women in the FIS Freestyle Skiing World Cup Halfpipe final, but smooth and seamless runs from Devin Logan (USA) and Antti-Jussi ‘AJ’ Kemppainen (FIN) took out the women and men’s gold medals respectively.

Devin Logan’s score of 84.60 marked a stunning return from a serious knee injury sustained shortly after winning halfpipe gold at Winter Games NZ 2012. In her first competitive appearance since the injury she dropped into Cardrona’s Olympic halfpipe eighth out of twelve finalists, just as the weather closed in. She still threw down a huge run including a left 540 tail, left ally-oop mute, mute grab, right flare safety, left 720 safety with a switch left ally-oop 360 to finish.

Top women’s qualifier from yesterday, Angeli Vanlaanen (USA) then had to wait more than an hour before her run but still scored high with 80.00, enough for silver. Mirjam Jaeger (SUI) took bronze with a solid run of 74.80.

Australia's Amy Sheehan (AUS) finished eighth while New Zealand’s sole finalist, Janina Kuzma took a fall in the second half of her run and finished tenth overall. Ayana Onozuka (JPN) who finished second in yesterday’s qualifying also fell and finished eleventh.

Upcoming events

Wednesday 21st August
Alpine Slalom - Men and Women

Thursday 22nd August
Snowboard Halfpipe Qualifying

Friday 23rd August
Ski Slopestyle Qualifying

Saturday 24th August
Snowboard Halfpipe
Finals

Sunday 25th August
Ski Slopestyle Finals