Halfpipe World Cup season set to wrap up in Tignes
Aug 31, 2018·Freeski Park & Pipe
Tignes, France - The fourth and the final stop of the 2016/2017 halfpipe World Cup season is set to take place on Tuesday, March 7 in Tignes (FRA).
For the third year in a row, FIS Freestyle will partner with the SFR Freestyle Tour for the Tignes event, and based on last year’s precedent we can expect another perfectly cut pipe, a huge crowd for finals under the lights, and a collection of some of the very best men’s and ladies’ halfpipe skiers in the world on hand looking to close out a highly-entertaining 2016/17 World Cup season on a high note.
Following the Sunday's qualifications top 6 ladies and top 10 men made their way through into the final round.
In the ladies' competition it was Canada's Cassie Sharpe who impressed the judges the most and led the field with a score of 89.60 points. The silver medalist from World Championships in Kreischberg went big and executed her tricks perfectly, and on Tuesday she will be trying to come back on top of the podium in Tignes, where she won the World Cup competition back in 2015.
French favorite Marie Martinod finished the qualifications on second with Maddie Bowman of USA taking third.
Ayana Onozuka (JPN), Annalisa Drew (USA) and Sabrina Cakmakli (GER) rounded out top 6 and they will also compete in the finals on Tuesday.
In the overall World Cup ranking Marie Martiond has already stacked up enough points to secure the crystal globe. The 32-year-old skier from La Plagne (FRA) is on fire this season taking win after win and with 300 points after three stops Martinod will be looking to receive her well-deserved trophy in front of the home crowd.
Annalisa Drew sits second in the ranking with 175 points with Ayana Onozuka coming just behind on third with 170 points.
In the men's event Joel Gisler of Switzlerland put down an incredible second run highlighted by his switch dub 1080 safety. The 23-year-old Swiss rider kept his amplitude high and throw in some technical tricks that earned him 94.40 points and top spot on the day.
Aaron Blunck (USA) finished on second with his teammate Birk Irving coming up on third.
Kevin Rolland (FRA), Alex Ferreira (USA), Noah Bowman (CAN), Ben Valentin (FRA), Brendan Mackey (CAN), Simon d'Artois (CAN) and Taylor Seaton (USA) rounded out top 10 and also made the cut into the finals.
The crystal globe is still up for grabs in men's competition. With current World Cup leader Torrin Yater-Wallace sidelined with an injury, it's once again all up to Blunck, Valentin and Rolland to contend for the overall win.
Blunck currently holds second on the standing, and comes into Tignes on the heels of his second-place performance at the Olympic test event in Bokwang Phoenix Park (KOR).
However, Blunck, sitting on 195 points for 2016/17, is going to be in tough battle against a pair of French skiers who will be pushing hard for top spot on Tuesday night and top spot on the season in front of a boisterous home crowd.
Both Ben Valentin and Kevin Rolland are hot on Blunck’s heels heading into the final event, with Valentin just five points back, at 185, and Rolland not far behind with 179.
The halfpipe finals are scheduled to take place on Tuesday, March 7 at 19:00 CET.
LIVE SCORING:
Live brackets for the finals will be available HERE
LIVE BROADCAST:
EUROSPORT 2 (EUROPE) - Livestream available on Eurosport Player
CBC - Canada (Livestream available on cbcsports.ca)
SFR SPORT 3 - France
NBC - USA (Livestream available on nbcsports.com/live)
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