Freeskiers fly the Swiss skies at Big Air Chur
Some of the biggest names in the world of top-tier freestyle skiing will be on hand in Chur, Switzerland this Friday with an eye toward earning points and sealing places in the build-up to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games.
Look to the skies over the Alpine postcard city of Chur this Friday and Saturday and you’ll likely see it streaked with spinning whirls of colour and artistry as the Big Air Chur festival – first stop on the world cup tour – gets going in the capital of the Swiss canton of Grisons.
While the snowboarders will also be in action in what is a double world cup stop, here we take a closer look at the freestyle skiers on hand on the banks of the River Rhine, smack in the heart of Europe, for an event with qualification consequences and points on the line for the upcoming Beijing Olympic Winter Games.
“The first event of a season is always special,” said FIS Park and Pipe Contest Director Roberto Moresi, “You get to catch up with everybody, see familiar faces and lots of friends, and it’s even more amazing when you’re at a city event with all the fun around that. With the Olympics coming around many are still trying to lock in their spot for Beijing, and these events leading to the Games are of the highest importance.”
Strong Swiss team leads men's charge
Some of the world’s best freestyle skiers – or freeskiers as they’re more commonly known – are already massed in Chur and ready to get to it. Among those to watch on the men’s side are Kim Gubser and Fabien Boesch, local hometown heroes of the Swiss team.
“The summer training went well,” said former world and X Games champion Boesch, one of the up-and-coming stars of a Swiss squad without Andri Ragettli, who continues his recovery from injury. “I have worked a lot in the fitness area and have also been able to feel my way around new tricks.”
The 2020/21 big air world champion Oliver Magnusson of Sweden will also be competing alongside American slopestyle world champion and twice crystal globe winner, Colby Stevenson.
Birk Ruud of Norway, Canada’s Edouard Therriault and Matej Svancer of Austria round out the men’s field.
Women's world champs abound
Russian world champion (big air) Anastasia Tatalina is in line to participate on the women’s side of the competition. She’ll be pushed to the limits by the Swiss crew of Mathilde Gremaud, Giulia Tanno and Sarah Hoefflin who will hope to shake things up at home in the first stop of the tour.
Other women to watch out for are France’s double 2020/21 crystal globe winner Tess Ledeux, Team USA’s Maggie Voisin and halfpipe and slopestyle world champion GU Eileen of the People’s Republic of China – under heavy pressure to perform well on home snow during this February’s Olympic competition that runs from 3 to 19 February at the Genting Snow Park in Zhangjiakou and Big Air Shougang in Beijing, China.
Fans return from COVID-19 absence
The Chur competition will consist of 30 women’s athletes and 50 on the men’s side – and both are bound to be fierce in what is the first FIS freeski event in front of a live audience in more than two-and-a-half years.
Befitting the long-awaited return to competition, the event is a dual sport-and-music festival with electronic acts like Breitbild, Apache 207, Jan Delay, Sido, Nura entertaining onlookers and athletes both.
Freestyle skiing joined the Olympic programme first as a demonstration sport (moguls, aerials and ballet) at the Calgary Games of 1988. Moguls became an official sport of the Winter Games in 1992 and aerials came on board in 1994. Ski cross was added in 2010 while halfpipe and slopestyle events emerged in 2014.
The Beijing 2022 freestyle skiing competition consists of aerials, big air/slopestyle, halfpipe, moguls and ski cross.