Five Crystal Globes awarded as Kühtai hosts final Banked Slalom races of the season

Two Banked Slalom races took place this weekend in Kühtai (AUT), where five athletes secured the discipline’s Crystal Globe for the 2024-25 season.

This season, Banked Slalom events were contested under a new format. Athletes completed two qualification runs, after which the four fastest riders advanced to head-to-head heats. The top qualifier faced the fourth seed, while the second and third qualifiers competed against each other. The winners of these heats moved on to the grand final, while the remaining two battled for third place in the small final.

In the Women’s Upper Limb (UL) category, Spain’s Irati Idiakez Lopez dominated once again, winning both races in Austria and adding 200 more points to her tally to reach a perfect total of 400—the maximum possible in Banked Slalom this season. This marks her first career Crystal Globe. The podium was completed both times by Poland’s Monika Kotzian and Anna Drobna.

France’s Cécile Hernandez was equally unstoppable in the Women’s Lower Limb (LL) category, despite competing with a knee sprain. Fresh off her Snowboard Cross victory in Lenk, she claimed both Banked Slalom wins in Austria, finishing ahead of Lisa Bunschoten (NED) and Brenna Huckaby Clegg (USA) on Saturday, and China’s Nianjia Hu and Tiantian Li on Sunday. Her strong performances secured her the Crystal Globe in the discipline, just ahead of Bunschoten, who impressed in her return to competition.

On the men’s side, it was a double victory for Aron Fahrni (SUI) in the Men’s UL category, Noah Elliott (USA) in Men’s LL1, and Emanuel Perathoner (ITA) in Men’s LL2. Both Elliott and Perathoner delivered remarkable consistency, collecting the maximum 400 points for the second consecutive season and adding another Crystal Globe to their collections.

For Fahrni, however, this was his first Crystal Globe. The Swiss rider claimed victory in three of the four Banked Slalom races this season, with his only setback being a third-place finish in the very first race.

Emanuel Perathoner reflected on the challenges of the new format, emphasizing the importance of consistency throughout the competition day:

“The lines changed, and my competitors improved in the second race, but once again, I managed to be faster than them, setting the best times in qualifying, the semifinals, and the final. With this new format, consistency throughout the entire day is key because one mistake can be costly.”

Meanwhile, Chris Vos (NED), who finished second in the Men’s LL1 Banked Slalom standings, was thrilled with his results and proud of his wife, Lisa Bunschoten:

“Super happy to be back racing so soon after my injury—taking home P5 and P6 in the races and winning silver in the overall Banked Slalom! Not bad at all! [...] Beyond proud of Lisa for taking home silver.”

The Snowboard Cross World Cup season is also coming to an end, with the final two races set to take place in Steamboat (USA) on 25 and 26 February, before the season’s pinnacle event—the World Championships in Big White (CAN) in early March.