2022/23 FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup preview: Moguls & Aerials

Dec 01, 2022·Freestyle

Mikael Kingsbury and Ikuma Horishima competing in the final dual moguls match-up of the season in Megeve (FRA).

© Alexis Boichard/Agence Zoom

The 2022/23 FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup season is ready to get underway this weekend once again at Finland’s Ruka resort, where moguls and aerials competitions will get the ball rolling on what is certain to be a thrilling season.

Post-Olympic seasons are always interesting as an army of new blood joins the World Cup tour, longstanding veterans reassess their place in the competition world, and in-their-prime elite athletes look to reassert their dominance as we start a fresh four-year cycle building towards the Milano-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games.

We’re more than excited to welcome spectators back on site at our competitions, while also bringing the action to fans around the world through extensive TV broadcasts, livestream, and social media coverage. All the pieces are in place for a hugely entertaining season of FIS Freestyle action, and we can’t wait to share it with you all.

The 2022/23 World Cup calendar features a total of 37 competitions at nine locations spread over eight different countries including six moguls, six dual moguls, six aerials and one aerials mixed team event.

For the 13th straight time, also this year the 2022/23 FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup season will get underway in Ruka (FIN) with moguls and aerials competitions on December 3-4.

After that it’s over to Sweden for both moguls and dual moguls competitions on December 10-11 at Idre Fjall. The final event of the stretch in December will bring us to Alpe d’Huez, as the French resort which made its freestyle World Cup debut last season, is looking to host another pair of moguls and dual moguls competitions on December 16-17.

Following the holiday break, the freestyle tour will jump over to North America, first to Le Relais (CAN) with back-to-back aerials competitions on January 21-22, and then to Val St Come (CAN) with moguls and dual moguls events on January 27-28. After two World Cup stops in Canada we will then move down to USA for the annual freestyle bonanza at Deer Valley, with moguls, aerials and dual moguls competitions on February 2-4.

The World Cup tour will then travel back to Europe, stopping in at Italy’s Chiesa in Valmalenco on February 11 for the final dual moguls competition before we head to the big show at the 2023 World Championships in Bakuriani (GEO).

The WSC programme features the aerials mixed team competition on February 19, with aerials individual qualifications coming up on February 21 and the finals following the day after on February 22. Moguls competition will go down on February 25, with dual moguls taking place the next day on February 26.

Following the pinnacle event of the season in Georgia, the tour will then move to Switzerland’s Engadin, which will see the first aerials World Cup competition on Swiss soil since 2008 on March 5.

Finally the FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup tour will come to a close in the middle of March in Kazakhstan as we’re set to return to the 2021 World Championships venue at Almaty’s Shymbulak resort. Moguls and dual moguls competitions are scheduled for March 17-18 with aerials and aerial mixed team competitions following right after on March 19-20.

WHO TO WATCH

MOGULS WOMEN

Favourites: Jakara Anthony (AUS), Perrine Laffont (FRA), Anri Kawamura (JPN)
Honorable mentions: Olivia Giaccio (USA), Tess Johnson (USA), Jaelin Kauf (USA), Hannah Soar (USA), Rino Yanagimoto (JPN), Hinako Tomitaka (JPN)

MOGULS MEN

Favourites: Mikael Kingsbury (CAN), Ikuma Horishima (JPN), Walter Wallberg (SWE)

Honorable mentions: Ludvig Fjallstrom (SWE), Kosuke Sugimoto (JPN), Pavel Kolmakov (KAZ), Benjamin Cavet (FRA), Matt Graham (AUS), Cole McDonald (USA), Nick Page (USA), Jimi Salonen (FIN)

AERIALS WOMEN

Favourites: Laura Peel (AUS), Danielle Scott (AUS)

Honorable mentions: Anastasiya Novosad (UKR), Zhanbota Aldabergenova (KAZ), Marion Thenault (CAN), Winter Vinecki (USA), Nick Megan (USA), Kaila Kuhn (USA), Flavie Aumond (CAN)

AERIALS MEN

Favourties: Oleksandr Abramenko (UKR), Noe Roth (SUI), Justin Schoenefeld (USA)

Honorable mentions: Pirmin Werner (SUI), Christopher Lillis (USA), Lewis Irving (CAN), Dmytro Kotovskyi (UKR), Miha Fontaine (CAN)