Spy Optics FIS NZ Freestyle Open wraps up at Cardrona
Aug 31, 2018·Freeski Park & Pipe
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Cardona (NZL) - Three days of action at the Spy Optics NZ Freestyle Open saw international field of freeskiers battling for podium spots in the halfpipe and slopestyle competition held at Cardrona Alpine Resort on August 4-6.
The event serves as a good warm up opportunity ahead of next month’s Audi quattro Winter Games NZ which will host the FIS Junior Freestyle Ski and Snowboard World Championships.
Slopestyle
In the finals, US skier Eileen Gu had another good day at the office, looking strong and confident with a technical rail line and finishing with a stylish back to back 720 combo for the win.
“I’m really happy to put a run down and I’m stoked on my first rail trick,” said Gu. “ I fell pretty hard on my switch-two-continuing-two a few days ago so it was really exciting to get that trick today, I’m just really happy with how everything went.”
Kokone Kondo (JPN) was a close second, also with a technical rail section and well-executed jumps. Kirsty Muir (GBR) rounded out the podium in third.
The men’s ski final saw an impressively high level of competition with very little separating the podium place-getters. Taisei Yamamoto (JPN) delivered the full package – smooth rails, huge amplitude, good variety of tricks and well-held grabs - throwing down on every feature and skiing away with the win.
Torin Yater-Wallace (USA,) one of the world’s most medalled halfpipe skiers, proved his skills in the park today with a well-executed run which kept the judges counting right to the last minute as he spun a right dub 14 of the final jump and landed in second place. Ryan Stevenson (USA) finished third.
“I’m super excited,” said yater-Wallace. “Being a halfpipe skier, it’s the first slopestyle event I’ve signed up for in four plus years, I’m super hyped how the event went. This is what I’ve always wanted to do. After a number of years skiing pipe I’m finally making the switch I’ve always wanted to. I was just going in having fun and it went well.”
Halfpipe
In the men’s ski division the top three men all spun 900s despite the tricky conditions. Britain’s Sam Ward stomped a big cork nine tail grab out of the start gate and maintained his amplitude with big spins on both walls of the pipe for the win.
“I was looking for redemption after falling on the first hit in the slopestyle,” he explained.
“I just tried to push through the weather today. I adapted my run and changed up which tricks I did on which hits. I think landing both way 900s was a highlight.”
Korean athlete Kangbok Lee finished in second, bookending his run with a big cork nine tail grab out of the gate and a cork 1080 – the biggest spin of the day for the skiers – on the final hit. GB’s Sam Gashin was third.
A young Kiwi contingent laid down some solid runs to finish in the middle of the pack. 12 year old Gustav Legnavsky was fifth, Max McDonald (14) sixth and Luca Harrington (14) seventh.
Also skiing for Great Britain, Zoe Atkin put her nerves aside and boosted out of the pipe on her very first trick.
“I just decided I had nothing to lose,” she said. “I really liked my first hit, it was higher than I thought and I got really excited.”
From there Atkin laced up the win with a right 360 set up in to a switch spin combo of switch left 5 to switch right 3, all grabbed.
“I’m really excited I didn’t expect it (the win) at all,” she said.
Yujin Jang (KOR) was awarded second place in women’s ski, showing good amplitude and solid grabs, and combining left and right spins down the pipe. Kirsty Muir (GB) claimed her second podium finish of the competition, adding bronze in halfpipe to yesterday’s bronze in slopestyle.
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