Snowboard World Cup circuit returns to Laax

The LAAX OPEN has become one of the premiere events of the snowboard slopestyle and halfpipe calendar over the past decades. And being a World Cup tour stop since last season, stakes will be raised one more time as 17th to 20th January 2018 mark the final qualifying opportunity for many riders looking to make their Olympic teams.

As a result, the competitor field for the LAAX Open is as deep and strong as ever with some of the world's finest going for the win at this prestigious event.

Slopestyle

Defending champions Mark McMorris, Tyler Nicholson and Max Parrot are looking to repeat the Canadian domination of last year’s event.

But the task will not be easy with the likes of Marcus Kleveland (NOR), Staale Sandbech (NOR), Sven Thorgren (SWE), Roope Tonteri (FIN), Mons Roisland (NOR), Seppe Smits (BEL) and Torgeir Bergrem (NOR) all ready to take the crown.

The women's competition will feature the return of Austrian snowboard queen Anna Gasser to the World Cup slopes.

Two months after bruising her heel during training for the A+S Beijing, the reigning Big Air World Champion will be looking for redemption following her second-place finish in last year’s LAAX OPEN.

However, the 27-year-old will face some strong competition as Norway’s Silje Norendal has displayed consistent form in the last events and Switzerland’s Isabel Derungs as well as Sina Candrian will have a home town advantage.

In addition, Snowmass World Cup winner Christy Prior (NZL) is also supposed to start alongside strong riders Reira Iwabuchi and Miyabi Onitsuka from Japan, Klaudia Medlova (SVK) as well as Canada's Spencer O'Brian and Laurie Blouin.

Halfpipe

2014 Olympic Gold medallist Iouri Podladtchikov (SUI) will be looking to stamp his dominance on his hometown pipe after missing out a top World Cup result this season so far.

Teammates Jan Scherrer (SUI) and Patrick Burgener (SUI) will also have the support of the dedicated Swiss fans but with Australia’s Scotty James, no less than the reigning World Champion and Japan's Ayumu Hirano, Yuto Totsuka and Taku Hiraoka as well as Yiwei Zhang (CHN) in the mix, victory will not come easy for the Swiss.

In the ladies’ event, Spain’s Queralt Castellet will drop in the superpipe at Crap Sogn Gion as the favourite following her win in Snowmass last weekend.

But China’s reigning World Champion Xuetong Cai will also be a strong favourite. Both will be up against the likes of Haruna Matsumoto (JPN), Jiayu Liu (CHN), Sena Tomita (JPN), Hikaru Oe (JPN) and duel Winter Olympic Games medallist Torah Bright (AUS), too.

Schedule

• Ladies' and Men's Slopestyle Qualifiers – Tuesday, 16th January 2018, 9:30 (CET)

• Ladies' and Men's Halfpipe Qualifiers – Thursday, 18th January 2018, 9:15 (CET)

• Ladies' and Men's Slopestyle Finals – Friday, 19th January 2018, 13:00 (CET)

• Ladies' and Men's Halfpipe Finals – Saturday, 20th January 2018, 13:00 (CET)

Viewing

• SRF2 (https://www.srf.ch/)

• Eurosport (https://ch.eurosportplayer.com/)

• Rai Sport (http://www.raisport.rai.it/)

• NBC (https://www.nbc.com/)

• Highlights on FIS Snowboard Youtube (https://www.youtube.com/user/fissnowboardchannel) following the event.

• Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/fissnowboard/) following the event.

Live TV times will be constantly updated here.