Iwabuchi repeats and Laframboise claims career first at Modena big air
Nov 02, 2019·Snowboard Park & Pipe
A little bit of drizzle couldn’t put a damper on what was a phenomenal start to the 2019/20 FIS Snowboard season in the northern hemisphere, as the very best riders in the world put on a highly entertaining show at the Modena Skipass big air World Cup. And while changing conditions kept everyone on their toes, Japan’s Reira Iwabuchi and Canada’s Nicolas Laframboise elevated their game to claim the victories with electric performances.
Iwabuchi repeats in Modena
Iwabuchi won here in Modena last season on her way to claiming the 2018/19 big air crystal globe, and on Saturday the 17-year-old picked up right where she left off last season. After cruising through qualifications in top spot, Iwabuchi stomping a double underflip 900 indy and switch backside double cork 1080 mute with her first two hits of the finals to give herself a combined score of 176.50, putting her nearly 50 points ahead of her nearest competitor by night’s end.
With Saturday’s win, Iwabuchi now has victories in four of 12 career World Cup starts and six podiums total, and now moves into top spot on the 2019/20 World Cup leaderboard with 1,400 points.
Runner-up would be Brooke Voigt (CAN), who claimed second with a strategic performance that saw her put down backside and frontside 720s for a score of 126.75 for the first of three Canadian podiums on the night. Voigt would be the only other women’s rider to stomp two clean tricks on the evening, and she would be rewarded with her the seventh podium of her World Cup career.
Third place went to pre-competition favourite Anna Gasser (CAN), who found herself in the lead after a massive first-hit double underflip, but who couldn’t quite put her tricks down clean in her second and third attempts and ended up with a score of 109.75. Still, it was a solid return to World Cup competition for the 28-year-old Austrian after she missed most of last season with a fractured ankle.
Women’s quotes:
Reira Iwabuchi (JPN) - “It’s was really good conditions for me tonight. I’m happy to be back in first place here Italy, and I’m super happy to land two doubles in the competition.”
Brooke Voigt (CAN) - “I had a really, really rough practice. I think because of the rain the ruts (on the run-in) were magnified and made it challenging. Tonight was little nerve-wracking, but it was fun.”
Anna Gasser (AUT) - “It started off really well tonight, but unfortunately I caught an edge on my second jump - which I haven’t done in years - and that scared me a little bit. Unfortunately I couldn’t put down a clean second trick after that, but I’m happy that my first score was big enough to still get me onto the podium.”
Women’s trick list (click for video):
1st - Reira Iwabuchi (JPN) - Frontside Dub Underflip 900 Frontside grab, Backside Dub 1080 Mute
2nd - Brook Voigt (CAN) - Backside 720, Frontside 720 Melon
3rd - Anna Gasser (AUT) - Cab Dub Underflip 900 Mute, Backside 720 Mute
Laframboise takes first World Cup win
In the men’s competition it was a member of Canada’s NextGen team stepping it up to best the world’s top pros, as 19-year-old Nicolas Laframbois put on a dynamite performance from beginning to end of the day to claim the first victory of his World Cup career.
Laframbois was stomping everything he tried throughout the day, and put the rest of the field on notice by winning his qualification heat. Come finals time the diminutive Canadian seemed unfazed by the changing speeds and tricky run-in, stomping a massive first-hit frontside triple cork 1440 mute, followed by the backside version of the same trick on his second attempt for a combined score of 172.50. Laframboise was able to finish it all off with a beautiful victory lap frontside 360 to end the evening.
Just behind Laframboise was one of snowboarding’s greats, as his fellow Canadian Mark McMorris made a strong return to World Cup action after nearly two years away, recovering from a fall on his first run to stomp a backside triple 1440 indy and frontside triple 1440 mute on his final two hits, earning a combined score of 168.00 and the eighth podium of his World Cup career.
And finally it was Chris Corning of the USA rounding out the men’s podium in third, as the winner of the 2019/20 World Cup season-opener at the Winter Games NZ in Cardrona (NZL) put down a flat 1440 melon on his first hit and backside triple cork 1440 melon on his second hit for a score of 166.25. Corning looked to step it up by taking his backside triple to 1620 on his final attempt, but a double handslap kept him from improving his score. Still, it was enough to take third on the day and maintain his lead atop the men’s big air World Cup standings with 1600 points. Laframboise, meanwhile, now sits in second with 1500 points.
Men’s quotes:
Nicolas Laframboise (CAN) - “Man, it’s just been insane. Right from this morning, I qualified first and got the dream start, and it’s just kept going from there. Today I was landing everything, and everything felt so good, just like way easier than it usually does. I’m just on cloud right now. It’s a dream come true.”
Mark McMorris (CAN) - “I’m hyped to get on the podium, it feels good. I’m glad I landed the two tricks I wanted to, but I just wish I would have put them down with my first two runs so I could have stepped it up to try and take the win. I didn’t think I was judged very well on my last hit, but other than that it was fun. And it’s fun to ride here in Modena. This is a big crowd and they’re all here for snowboarding, it's more organic crowd I feel like, and that's cool.”
Chris Corning (USA) - “I’m not real happy with my scores, but I love to be here in Modena. It’s a fun contest and I’m happy to walk away with a podium. Hopefully we’ll be back to step it up next year.”
Men’s trick list (click for video):
1st - Nicolas Laframboise (CAN) - Frontside Triple 1440 Mute, Backside Triple 1440 Mute
2nd - Mark McMorris (CAN) - Backside Triple 1440 Indy, Frontside Triple 1440 Mute
3rd - Chris Corning (USA) - Front 1440 Melon, Backside Triple 1440 Melon
QUICK LINKS:
Full livestream replay (available until Saturday, Nov. 9)
