Big Air World Cup continues this Friday in Moenchengladbach
Aug 31, 2018·Freeski Park & Pipe
Moenchengladbach, GER - Fresh off last Sunday’s action in Stubai, the FIS Freeski World Cup is back on track on Friday for a big air event taking over the stage at SparkassenPark in Moenchengladbach, with top bands, DJs and a large product promotion area rounding out the event and ensuring a unique winter-sport and festival atmosphere.
Following last year’s big success of the event in the Lower Rhine town, this season freeskiers from all over the world will once again be looking to light up the huge scaffold jump set-up in Germany as they compete in the season’s second big air World Cup competition on December 1.
Taking place on what is normally a field hockey stadium, the venue at Moenchengladbach has been transformed into a picture-perfect big air competition stage with the building of the massive scaffolding ramp. With a double-dose of World Cup action including both freestyle skiing and snowboarding competitions, more than 20’000 spectators are expected to take in this weekend's action.
In the ladies’ event watch out for Giulia Tanno (SUI), who just two weeks ago in Milan stomped the first ever forward double cork 1080 put down in a competition by a female skier - a trick she will no doubt be looking to include in her repertoire in Moenchengladbach.
And with two of the top riders from the season’s first event in Italy, Coline Ballet-Baz (FRA) and Johanne Killi (NOR) sitting out Friday’s competition, Tanno emerges as a favourite to take the overall lead in the big air ranking after the competition wrap up on Friday night.
That being said, she will have to first beat the likes of her Swiss Freeski teammate Sarah Hoefflin, as well as Silvia Bertagna (ITA) or Kea Kuehnel (GER), with all of those ladies capable of jumping their way into first place.
On the men’s side of event things looks non-less exciting with four out of five top freeskiers from Milan all present also in Germany.
After a remarkable victory two weeks ago in Milan, expect Elias Ambuehl to be pumped up as he tries to make it two-for-two on Friday. However, should he struggle, the Swiss team should still be well represented by his buddies Jonas Hunziker and Colin Willi.
Also let’s don’t underestimate the Scandinavians, including the likes Oystein Braaten, the winner of last Sunday's slopestyle World Cup in Stubai (AUT), who leads a strong Norwegian team, as well as the Swedish duo of Hugo Burvall and Oscar Wester, and Finn Elias Syrja, an up-and-comer known for his pre grabbed tricks.
And of course the German Freeski Team has brought a solid squad to their home event in Moenchengladbach, so don’t be surprised if one of their seven skiers rises to the occasion and scores a podium finish to conclude Friday’s event on a high note.
Qualifications in Germany are set to get underway at 12:00 CET, with the finals going down later in the evening at 18:00.
QUICK LINKS:
)
)
)
