Utah 2019: Slopestyle preview
Feb 09, 2019·Snowboard Park & Pipe
The final snowboarding competition of the Utah 2019 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle & Freeski World Championships is scheduled to take to the slopes of Park City this weekend, with the best ladies and men of slopestyle set to duke it out in qualifications on Saturday beginning with the men at 9:00 MST, followed by the ladies’ at 12:05. Finals are slated for Sunday beginning at 11:00.
While Utah 2019 big air competition was unfortunately cancelled due to the heavy winter storm that hit the Park City area through the middle of this past week, nearly every rider entered in that competition will finally get their chance for a taste of world championships action in this weekend’s slopestyle event. And though the weather once again threatens to play a factor this weekend, especially with Sunday’s finals, every effort and resource will be in place to ensure a safe and successful competition.
The largest and most comprehensive field of riders at any competition this season is on hand here in Park City and ready to put the world championships course through its paces over the next two days.
On the ladies’ side, the slopestyle field will feature the likes of Jamie Anderson, Julia Marino, and Hailey Langland of the USA, Reira Iwabuchi and Miyabi Onitsuka of Japan, Laurie Blouin of Canada, Enni Rukajarvi of Finland, Silje Norendal of Norway, Isabel Derungs of Switzerland, and a wide-ranging field of talented but lesser-known candidates all entirely capable of making their way through to the six-rider final.
Over on the men’s field the big names come just as fast and as furiously, with top athletes ranging from Mark McMorris (CAN) to Red Gerrard (USA), Takeru Otsuka (JPN) to Chris Corning (USA), Mons Roisland and Staale Sandbech of Norway to Sven Thorgren and Mans Hedberg of Sweden, Rene Rennekangas (FIN), Seppe Smits (BEL), and Darcy Sharpe (CAN), Clemens Millauer (AUT), Yuri Okubo (JPN), and Moritz Thoenen (SUI)…the list goes on and on, with 56 of the world’s top riders ready to put down their best on the Park City course.
As mentioned, the weather forecast is looking to be a hindrance once again, especially for Sunday’s finals. While there is an allowance in the international competition rules for the qualification results to stand as the final, deciding results, everyone’s hopes and efforts will be directed to avoiding that outcome and ensuring a world championships-caliber competition this weekend.
QUICK LINKS:
Utah 2019 WSC data page (event programme, start lists, live scoring, results)
