Sadowski-Synnott wins third slopestyle World Championships title as Brearley takes top spot
Mar 21, 2025·Snowboard Park & Pipe
New Zealander Zoi Sadowski-Synnott’s spectacular return to form in 2025 has netted her a third slopestyle World Championships title as Canada’s Liam Brearley became the men’s World Champion in Engadin, Switzerland.
Sadowski-Synnott won World Championships gold in women’s slopestyle at the 2025 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships on Friday after posting a top score of 90.15 in her second run.
The 24-year-old was the last rider to drop into the course and claimed the top spot with a cab 270 boardslide 270, a frontside blunt 450 stalefish, a switch backside 900 Weddle, a frontside 1080 Weddle, then a backside 1260 melon, a cab underflip 540 Indy, and finished with a backside blunt 270 out.
After finishing the first run in fifth position, Sadowski-Synnott’s second run score dashed Japan’s hopes of a medal sweep by relegating Kokomo Murase’s score of 87.02 into second spot. Fellow Japanese rider Reira Iwabuchi claimed bronze with 83.55. Mari Fukada finished fourth on 82.15.
“I messed up my first run and put so much pressure on myself coming into that last one, but all the girls are riding so good,” said Sadowski-Synnott.
Friday’s win is Sadowski-Synnott’s third World Championships title after she claimed back-to-back gold medals at the 2019 and 2021 editions. At the 2023 edition in Bakuriani, the New Zealander was runner-up.
“I can’t really believe it. I didn't really think about it coming into this week,” she said.
“I was just feeling incredibly grateful for this whole winter after my injury last year, just really thankful for the support from my sponsors, my team, my friends and family.”
Her World Championships-winning form also comes after the 24-year-old returned to World Cup competition midway through the 2024/25 season after battling injuries for more than a year.
Upon her return, Sadowski-Synnott – who is the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games slopestyle champion – delivered back-to-back World Cup victories in slopestyle and big air in Aspen in February, followed by another slopestyle victory in the season finale in Flachau (AUT) on 14 March.
The Flachau victory ensured Sadowski-Synnott beat Great Britain’s Mia Brookes to the slopestyle Crystal Globe. Brookes went on to win the overall women’s Park & Pipe Globe after amassing a total of seven World Cup podium finishes out of a possible eight across big air and slopestyle.
Brookes – the 2023 World Champion – finished sixth on Friday behind two-time big air Olympic gold medallist Anna Gasser (AUT).
In men’s slopestyle, Liam Brearley (CAN) also delivered a winning second-run score of 90.15 on Friday to top the 16-man final.
Beijing 2022 big air champion Su Yiming (CHN) claimed silver behind Brearley with a second-run score of 85.07, while 16-year-old Oliver Martin (USA) took bronze with 78.98.
Twenty-two-year-old Brearley stormed to pole position with a cab 180 to frontside lipslide pretzel 270, a switch backside 270 boardslide underflip 630 stalefish, a backside 1620 melon, a switch backside 1440 Weddle, a cab 1620 triple Weddle, a frontside 1080 truck driver, and finished with a 50-50 frontside 270 boardslide.
“I’m so glad I landed that run. I didn’t land my first one, and I was just like ‘I’ve got nothing to lose, I’m going to put it all out there’, and it worked out,” said Brearley.
The Canadian said the slopestyle course at Engadin brought out the best of a strong field featuring some of snowboarding’s best riders.
“These boys are killing it and it’s such a high level of slopestyle right now. It’s just an insane level of riding,” said Brearley.
Fellow Canadian and 2024/25 slopestyle Crystal Globe winner Cameron Spalding finished in sixth place behind 2025 X Games gold medallist Red Gerard (USA). France’s Romain Allemand finished fourth, while some of the field’s top-ranked riders finished at the bottom of the rankings, including 2021 and 2023 winner Marcus Kleveland (NOR) in 14th place. Japan’s Taiga Hasegawa, the 2024/25 overall men’s Park & Pipe Crystal Globe winner and the defending big air World Champion, finished 13th.
QUICK LINKS
FIS Snowboard World Championships data page (start lists, live scoring, results)
)
)
)
