US GRAND PRIX’s also FIS World Cups!
SOURCE: NEWSCHOOLERS.COM
The Visa U.S. Freeskiing Grand Prix in Copper Mountain, CO and Mammoth Mountain, CA got a boost from the International Ski Federation this week. Halfpipe skiing competitions at both sites, as well as the slopestyle skiing competition at Mammoth Mountain, were added to the FIS Freestyle World Cup calendar as the events prepare for their Olympic debut at Sochi, Russia in 2014.
The addition to the FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup gives the competitions top sanctioning in the sport, along with already being a part of the Association of Freeskiing Professionals (AFP) World Tour as platinum level events.
Photo by John Vandervalk
"It's important to us to have our freeskiing events at the highest levels of both the FIS and AFP," said U.S. Freeskiing Director Jeremy Forster. "We especially appreciate the willingness of FIS to partner with the freeskiing community not only on these events but in creating consistency of judging, formats and education across the sport worldwide."
The Visa U.S. Freeskiing Grand Prix will open with a halfpipe skiing competition Dec. 7-9 in Copper Mountain. The series will conclude Feb. 29 – Mar. 3 in Mammoth Mountain with both halfpipe and slopestyle skiing. Slopestyle is a new addition to the FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup schedule.
Mike Riddle, Justin Dorey and Simon Dumont at last year's Grand Prix. Photo by John Vandervalk
USSA's Grand Prix circuit started with snowboarding in 1995 and has continued as the longest standing top circuit in the sport. Freeskiing was added to the program a year ago with a debut event at Copper.
The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association, which rolled out a new U.S. Freeskiing program last January, has been a leader in pushing the new sports through FIS to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The IOC added halfpipe skiing to the 2014 Olympic program this past April, with slopestyle getting the final nod in July.
PART 2:
Mammoth Grand Prix First Step Towards Olympics
Words by Eric Meyers / Photos by Peter Morning - SOURCE: NEWSCHOOLERS.COM
A little more is on the line this winter when the Visa U.S. Freeskiing Grand Prix comes to Mammoth Mountain, as the USSA announced this week that the event’s halfpipe and slopestyle competitions have received FIS Freestyle World Cup status. The event will now directly affect the efforts of U.S. Ski Team Members that are vying for the chance to represent their country in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.
The 2014 Winter Olympics will be the first time that slopestyle skiing has ever appeared in the legendary event, and Mammoth Mountain has already begun preparations for the event to ensure that our sport’s first foray into the Olympiad goes smoothly.
The 22-foot tall, 550-foot long superpipe is nearing completion in the Mammoth Unbound Main Park, and it won’t be long before athletes from all over the world are flying to the resort to begin their winter training schedules. While the superpipe will be open soon, it will receive a fresh rebuild mid-winter so the athletes have brand new walls to work with at the Grand Prix. Over on the park side, the season started off with plenty of features to help skiers and snowboarders shake off the summer rust, with three jumps and 14 rails.
Mammoth team rider Parker White.
The Visa U.S. Freeskiing Grand Prix slopestyle will take place in Main Park – voted Best Terrain Park in the West by the readers of SKI Magazine – with much of the course viewable from the warmth of the lodge. “USSA is looking to us to set the standard for the Sochi Olympics,” said Mammoth Unbound Terrain Park Manager Michael Gregory. The setup will take much inspiration from the 2011 TTR Five-Star Grand Prix of Snowboarding event at Mammoth, which featured a pair of double pads with jib features, followed by a 55-foot jump, butter box, and ending with a pair of back-to-back jumps in the sixty to eighty foot range.
USSA's Grand Prix circuit started with snowboarding in 1995 and has continued as the longest standing top circuit in the sport. Freeskiing was added to the program a year ago with a debut event at Copper, and the Colorado resort will also host a halfpipe skiing event to kick off this year’s circuit as well.
“Mammoth's event this year plays a role as freeskiers will be focused on earning enough FIS points to be eligible for Olympic selection, so the Mammoth event will be the first time people have had an opportunity to do that in the U.S.,” said Grand Prix Tour Director Eric Webster. “It is also significant because it will be the first time that FIS has awarded overall World Cup titles (the globes) in Freeskiing.”
Mammoth team rider Chris Logan
The Visa U.S. Freeskiing Grand Prix season culminates in Mammoth from February 29 to March 3, so start making travel plans now to see the Unbound Ski Team member Kaya Turski defend her home slopes.