MOGUL SKIING: The men’s mogul competition kicks off on Day 0 (February 9th) of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games and with some of the biggest names in winter sports set to compete it is guaranteed to draw a big crowd to Bokwang Phoenix Snow Park.

Australia has a full men’s mogul skiing contingent at the 2018 Games, featuring Sochi Olympians

and Brodie Summers alongside Olympic rookies James Matheson and Rohan Chapman-Davies. Graham will lead the charge for Australia, heading into the Games ranked third in the world and with four podium finishes under his belt from the current World Cup season. Graham only just missed a spot in the Super Final at Sochi, finishing seventh, and will be determined not to miss his shot at the podium the second time around.

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Mikaël Kingsbury (Canada)

It is no secret that Mikaël Kingsbury is the man to beat in moguls skiing. The Sochi 2014 silver medallist won his sixth straight Crystal Globe as the overall World Cup champion for both moguls and all of freestyle skiing at the end of the 2016/17 season. After winning his first World Cup gold medal as an 18-year-old in 2010, the 25-year-old holds the world record for the most mogul World Cup victories, standing at 47. The Canadian has never missed a moguls World Championships podium and his longest running World Cup winning streak is 13 events.

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Dmitriy Reikherd (Kazakhstan)
Dmitriy Reikherd is coming into his fourth Olympic Games ranked second in the world after winning four silver medals along with one bronze from seven events so far this season. He has been competing on the World Cup circuit for over a decade, having made his debut in 2005. He placed 33rd at his first Games at Torino 2006, improved to 18th at Vancouver 2010 and again to 5th four years ago at Sochi. With the current season being his most successful and consistent to date, the 29-year-old will be looking for his first Olympic podium at PyeongChang this month.

Ikuma Horishima & Sho Endo (Japan)

Ikuma Horishima is coming into his debut Olympic Games as the current moguls World Champion. The 20-year-old won gold at the 2017 Asian Winter Games before taking out the title in both single moguls and dual moguls at the Sierra Nevada World Champs. While his results aren’t always consistent, the current world number six has proven he can bring his A-Game when it counts, having recently put an end to Mikaël Kingsbury’s 13 World cup winning streak, by winning gold at the last event before the Olympics in January.

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Horishima’s teammate Endo made his international debut a decade ago and is now off to his third Olympic Games at PyeongChang. The 27-year-old, who placed 7th on Olympic debut in 2010 and 15th at Sochi, has recorded top-10 finishes in five out of seven events this season and is heading into the 2018 Winter Games ranked fifth in the world standings. 

Georgia Thompson
olympics.com.au