Second event of the FWT by Peak Performance season to drop this Thursday.
· Competition confirmed for this Thursday, February 15
· Venue moved to T1 South
· North American leg ready to fire
KICKING HORSE, GOLDEN, BC, Canada – February 12, 2024: Stop two of this season's FWT by Peak Performance is poised for action, with FWT organizers giving the green light for competition to take place this Thursday, February 15. Cold temperatures are keeping the snow in prime condition, ahead of blue skies to greet competitors on comp day, providing athletes with promising conditions to deliver an explosive North American leg.
This is the second chance for athletes to rack up points before the mid-season cut, but who can carry their form from the Verbier Pro and maintain top positions? Both Núria Castán Barón (Snowboard Women) and Victor de Le Rue (Snowboard Men) will look to strengthen their rankings lead and, with Victor tasting success in Kicking Horse in 2019, he will surely be a firm favorite this year. The Ski Women's category looks stronger than ever, which will be on the mind of current rankings leader Zuzanna Witych as she looks to repeat her Verbier heroics. The Ski Men's category is even harder to pick, with both Kristofer Turdell and Maxime Chabloz standing atop of the podium here in the past, and the current rankings leader, Max Hitzig, is also the reigning champion of this event.
2023 World Champion Justine Dufour-Lapointe (Ski Women) will miss this event for personal reasons, while the rest of the Canadian contingent didn't have the best day out in Verbier. Jackson Bathgate (Ski Men) is at the limit of the Cut, while Marcus Goguen, Weitien Ho (both Ski Men) and Erin Sauve (Snowboard Women) will all need to lift their game to get out of relegation territory. Maybe local charger Stan Rey (Ski Men) will fly the flag for the home country, with this late-addition wildcard looking like a serious podium contender.
Thursday's competition will take place on T1 South – which held the event in 2022 – owing to sub-standard conditions on the Ozone Face. The top section of the Ozone is fine, but the middle section has an inconsistent snowpack – from a thick crust to deep, sugary snow over rock – while the bottom is littered with ice cookies the size of watermelons. Hardly ideal for freeride competition. In contrast, T1 South has a consistent snowpack with up to 20 cm of snow covering the old firm crust – including around 5 cm of fresh snow on Tuesday – with cold temperatures ensuring conditions will be suitable for the world's best freeriders.
This year, the forerunner will be Jay Rawe, the first sit-skier in FWT history to participate in proceedings. Jay got into sit-skiing after a BASE jumping accident in which he was lucky to survive. Sit-skiing allowed him to follow his passion for the outdoors and charging hard with friends in the mountains. His resume in this discipline is quite impressive, pioneering 540 and 720 spins, as well as featuring in Stomping Grounds by Matchstick Productions and earning an invite to the 2023 Swatch Nines.
Live Coverage starts at 10.15 am MST – 6.15 pm CET, with the first rider dropping at 10.30 am MST – 6.30 pm CET. The order will be:
· Snowboard Women
· Snowboard Men
· Ski Women
· Ski Men
Be sure to watch the event in person if you're in the area, otherwise remember that the competition will be broadcast LIVE at www.freerideworldtour.com, with incredible user-friendly replay options to make sure you don't miss a trick. In the meantime, stay tuned to the FWT social media channels and subscribe to the FWT newsletter to keep pace with the latest news as it drops, including competition and rider updates.
About the FWT
FWT Management SA is based in Verbier, Switzerland, and has been organizing premier sports events globally in mountain resorts since 1996. The company founded the Xtreme Verbier, an iconic event in freeride skiing and snowboarding, and turned this single competition into a prestigious series of worldwide events in 2008, the Freeride World Tour (FWT). The company has since grown to include multiple competition series that fall under the FWT brand – including FWT Challenger, FWT Qualifier and FWT Junior – with events across all formats taking place in Europe, North America, South America and Oceania. Since December 2022, FWT is part of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS).
About Peak Performance
Born in the Scandinavian mountains out of a love for skiing in remote, untouched terrain, our passion for adventure and nature runs deep. Our purpose is simple: we bring the freeride spirit to the world. As for our products, they all have the same purpose – empower the freedom to be adventurous and follow your own line. Whether it be horizontally or vertically, on skis, by bike, or on foot, they offer a balance of style and performance. Our Scandinavian heritage is ever present and our commitment to doing better things in a better way is our never-ending responsibility. For more information, please visit www.peakperformance.com.
