Switzerland’s Mathilde Gremaud opened the 2025–26 FIS Freeski Park & Pipe World Cup season with a victory at the Stubai Slopestyle World Cup in Austria on Saturday, November 22. Unfortunately, her victory was somewhat anticlimactic as the finals for Saturday had to be canceled due to high winds, and instead, Thursday’s qualification results were used to determine the standings. In addition, the weather forced organizers to cancel the men’s event entirely, with qualifications scheduled for Friday and finals for Saturday.
Gremaud, the reigning Olympic slopestyle champion and two-time world champion, had topped qualifying with an 81.92, securing the win once the finals were called off. “It feels like half a win, for sure, but it still counts,” she said. “We had really good qualifications, and it was a really good vibe. I’m happy that I could handle the beginning of the season.”
Her strong qualification run featured a right bio 900 leading tailgrab, a switch left 720 mute, a switch right 270 to forward, a right slide on the up-rail to 270 on the down-rail, a wallride, and a finishing left 270 to forward. Gremaud said she played the “variety card” on jumps while pushing hard on the rail sections.
Behind her, Canada’s Olivia Asselin finished second with 76.71, and Anni Karava from Finland took third with 68.07. Only the top eight women advance to the finals in Slopestyle, meaning two U.S. athletes would qualify: Grace Henderson, who placed sixth, and Marin Hamill, who placed eighth. Meanwhile, teammates Avery Krumme and Elaina Krusiewski placed 20th and 26th.
The event also marked the return of superstar Eileen Gu, competing in Stubai for the first time since 2020. The Olympic champion in Halfpipe and Big Air—and Beijing 2022 Slopestyle silver medalist—finished a surprising 29th in the Qualifications. Gu has competed sparingly in Slopestyle since Beijing, though she won last year’s Laax Open and finished second there in 2024. Gu has confirmed her intentions to qualify for the 2026 Winter Games; however, her low result in Stubai is a notable setback as the season begins and Olympic qualification ramps up.
The men’s competition, meanwhile, never got off the ground. After Friday’s qualifications were postponed due to the wind, Saturday brought even stronger gusts. Organisers were forced to cancel the men’s event completely, leaving no official results.
This marks the third straight year that the Stubai Slopestyle World Cup has been disrupted by weather, following final-round cancellations in both 2023 and 2024.
The Slopestyle World Cup heads next to Aspen on January 7, the second of three early-season events that count toward qualification for the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games. With several big names off to rocky starts—and others earning unexpected early-season momentum—the battle for Olympic spots is now firmly underway.
