Industry News
While the Alpine race skiers wrapped up their season the week before, the Freestylers still had a last weekend of World Cup events scheduled at Corvatsch, near St. Moritz, Switzerland.
U.S. Snowboarder Julia Marino earned her third-straight victory in Slopestyle. Marino put down an incredible second run, which secured her the victory with a score of 87.25 points, featuring a frontside boardslide 270 out, and then a lipslide pretzel out to finish off the top rail sections before turning it on in the jumps with a cab double underflip 900 frontside grab, into frontside 720 double grab, and then a massive backside double cork 1080 Weddle grab on jump three, before finishing things off with a frontside air in the halfpipe. The victory secured her the 22/23 season Crystal Globe for Slopestyle ahead of Reira Iwabuchi of Japan, who was sitting out the event due to an injury.
“It’s been a really fun season. There’s been a lot going on, but I’m super stoked to come here and finish off the season with this comp. The course here is probably the best course I’ve hit all season, just so much fun. And with the spring weather, being here with all the girls, it’s just a great way to finish off the season.”
Julia Marino
Second place went to Tess Coady from Australia with 85.00 points. The Bronze medal winner from the 2022 Winter Olympics put down a frontside 900 tail grab, switch backside 900 Weddle, and finished with a backside double cork 1080 Weddle.
Third place, Anna Gasser from Austria showed a cab 900 tail grab, frontside 720 Weddle, and a backside double cork 1080 melon, awarding her 82.25 points. 31-year-old Gasser has been a steady force in Slopestyle for years and did not slow down this year, winning a podium in each of the four Slopestyle World Cup events in the 22/23 season.
25-year-old Marino took home the Slopestyle Crystal Globe and was, in fact, close to winning the Overall Crystal Globe as well, just narrowly relegated to second overall by 7 points by Japanese halfpipe rider Mitsuki Ono.
The men’s victory in the Snowboard Slopestyle World Cup event in Corvatsch went to Japanese snowboarder Taiga Hasegawa. The 17-year-old won with an incredible run featuring a cab 270 on to 270 out on the first rail, then went frontside bluntslide to floaty 810 out on the launch rail before going into a massive cab 1440 tail grab, into a switch backside 1620 Weddle, and finishing with a backside 1800 Weddle, scoring the Japanese 92.00. It is his first-ever World Cup victory, and the young Japanese said in the finish, to everyone’s amusement:
“Thank you everyone. I’m so happy to get my first slopestyle podium and be first. Thank you so much. I need to study English!”
Second place went to Canada’s Liam Brearley and third to Sven Thorgren from Sweden.
U.S. snowboarder Dusty Henricksen finished the day in seventh place. The American had won one of the four World Cups this season and been ranked second in two further events, winning him 296 points and thus the Slopestyle Crystal Globe.
“I couldn’t ask for much more. It was definitely a big goal of mine and I know down the road, looking back this is going to be a super nice trophy to have and it’s a super special moment for myself. I’m kind of speechless. I’m fired up.”
Dusty Henricksen
So Team USA Snowboarding wraps up the season with both the men’s and women’s Slopestyle Crystal Globe. The Overall Crystal Globe for the men goes to Australia’s Valentino Guseli. The 17-year-old Australian became the first snowboarder in FIS World Cup history to podium in all three Freestyle events: Slopestyle, Half Pipe, and Big Air. Guseli had also taken home the Big Air Crystal Globe earlier this season. American Henricksen was runner-up in the Overall standings.
