What and who to watch out for at the 2019 Snowboard, Freestyle, and Freeski world champs
Chloe Kim, Anna Gasser, and David Wise are among the stars of the FIS event in Utah, USA.
More than 1,400 athletes from 40 nations, and over 50,000 fans are expected in Utah, USA, for the 2019 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski world championships (1-10 February).
Olympic champions Chloe Kim, Anna Gasser, David Wise, and Mikael Kingsbury are among the stars taking part in the event, which is Utah's biggest since the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City.
Three new Olympic disciplines will be staged for the first time: Freeski big air, mixed team Snowboard cross, and team aerials.
Competitions take place across three of the country's best winter resorts: Deer Valley, Park City, and Solitude Mountain.
Here's a guide to some of the events and the big names to look out for.
Snowboard
Halfpipe
PyeongChang 2018 halfpipe gold medallist Chloe Kim heads to the event as the big favourite.
After becoming the first woman to land a frontside double cork 1080 in October, the 18-year-old went on to win her first international competition since the Winter Olympics at Copper Mountain, USA in December.
In January she added another World Cup win in Laax, Swizterland, and her 5th winter X Games title in Aspen.
On the men's side, with three-time Olympic champion Shaun White taking a year off to focus on skateboarding and Olympic silver medallist Ayumu Hirano injured, only Scotty James will represent the PyeongChang podium in Utah.
The 24-year-old Australian recently took gold at the X Games and will likely fight for the title against Yuto Totsuka of Japan and home favourite Danny Davis.
2019 World Cup Leaders
Men: Scotty James (AUS)
Ladies: Xuetong Cai (CHI)
2018 Olympic Champions
Men: Shaun White (USA)
Ladies: Chloe Kim (USA)
2017 World Champions
Men: Scotty James (AUS)
Ladies: Cai Xuetong (CHI)
Slopestyle
The eyes of the home crowd will be on PyeongChang heroes Red Gerard and Jamie Anderson.
The youngest snowboard Olympic gold medallist, Gerard, had an extended summer break, taking surfing lessons in California to improve his balance.
At the winter X Games in Aspen he finished fifth behind winner and Olympic bronze medallist Mark McMorris of Canada.
Anderson dropped out of the slopestyle event at the X Games, following a crash in the big air (where she took bronze).
But the 28-year-old will be back in Park City, facing Aspen 2019 champion and PyeongChang Big Air bronze medallist Zoi Sadowski-Synnott of New Zealand as well as world cup leader Miyabi Onitsuka.
2019 World Cup Leaders
Men: Chris Corning (USA)
Ladies: Miyabi Onitsuka (JAP)
2018 Olympic Champions
Men: Redmond Gerard (USA)
Ladies: Jamie Anderson (USA)
2017 World Champions
Men: Seppe Smits (BEL)
Ladies: Laurie Blouin (CAN)
Big Air
Olympic champion Anna Gasser is still nursing an ankle injury and is in doubt for the world championships.
In November the Austrian made history landing a cab triple 1260 and took two podiums at the World Cup events in Modena, Italy (third place) and Beijing, China (first).
Japan's Reira Iwabuchi and Miyabi Onitsuka are entering the competition as favourites along with Canada's Laurie Blouin, gold medallist at the X Games.
In the men's field, World cup leader Takeru Otsuka is one of the top contenders, along with Chris Corning and X-Games champion Birk Ruud.
2019 World Cup Leaders
Men: Takeru Otsuka (JAP)
Ladies: Reira Iwabuchi (JAP)
2018 Olympic Champions
Men: Sebastien Toutant (CAN)
Ladies: Anna Gasser (AUT)
2017 World Champions
Men: Staale Sandbech (NOR)
Ladies: Anna Gasser (AUT)
Snowboard Cross
Reigning world and Olympic Snowboard Cross champion Pierre Vaultier won't be able to defend his title.
The Frenchman crashed hard in his first training run in Utah, suffering a head trauma.
Germany's Martin Noerl and Omar Visintin and Emanuel Perathoner of Italy will be the likely contenders for the gold medal.
Lindsey Jacobellis will look for an unprecedented sixth world title (the third in a row) on home snow.
The Torino 2006 silver medallist will likely face stiff competition from Olympic champions Michela Moioli of Italy and Eva Samkova of Czech Republic.
2019 World Cup Leaders
Men: Martin Noerl (GER)
Ladies: Lindsey Jacobellis (USA)
2018 Olympic Champions
Men: Pierre Vaultier (FRA)
Ladies: Michela Moioli (ITA)
2017 World Champions
Men: Pierre Vaultier
Ladies: Lindsey Jacobellis
Team Men: USA
Team Ladies: France
Parallel giant slalom
Reigning Olympic and world champion Ester Ledecka will miss the event.
The Czech star decided to focus on the alpine skiing world championships in Are, where the Super-G event (5 February) takes place only a day after the parallel giant slalom final in Utah.
In her absence, Italy's Nadya Ochern and Natalia Soboleva of Russia are the ones looking to take her crown.
On the men's side, Swiss snowboarder Nevin Galmarini will try to add a world to his Olympic title from PyeongChang.
2019 World Cup Leaders
Men: Roland Fischnaller (ITA)
Ladies: Nadya Ochner (ITA)
2018 Olympic Champions
Men: Nevin Galmarini (SUI)
Ladies: Ester Ledecka (CZE)
2017 World Champions
Men: Andreas Prommegger (SUI)
Ladies: Ester Ledecka (CZE)
Freestyle skiing
Halfpipe
Bring on the 3-way battle in the men's competition with Olympic champion David Wise and PyeongChang 2018 medallists Alex Ferreira and Nico Porteous.
Recently in Aspen, Ferreira clinched his first X Games gold in superpipe ahead of four-time winner Wise, with Porteous in third.
Olympic champion Cassie Sharpe will be the woman to beat after taking X Games gold.
The 26-year-old Canadian will battle it out against all-round teen sensation Kelly Sildaru.
The Estonian won three medals in Aspen (including a gold in slopestyle).
**2019 World Cup Leaders**
Men: Aaron Blunck (USA)
Ladies: Marie Martinod (FRA)
2018 Olympic Champions
Men: David Wise (USA)
Ladies: Cassie Sharpe (CAN)
2017 World Champions
Men: Aaron Blunck (USA)
Ladies: Ayana Onozuka (JAP)
Slopestyle
With World cup leader Andri Ragettli of Switzerland out with a knee injury, USA's Alexandre Hall is the men's favourite, following his recent X Games title in Aspen ahead of Alex Beaulieu-Marchand of France.
Olympic champion Sarah Hoefflin will be the one to watch in the women's competition.
**2019 World Cup Leaders**
Men: Andri Ragettli (SUI)
Ladies: Sarah Hoefflin (SUI)
2018 Olympic Champions
Men: Oystein Braten (NOR)
Ladies: Sarah Hoefflin (SUI)
2017 World Champions
Men: McRae Williams (USA)
Ladies: Tess Ledeux (FRA)
Ski cross
The most dominant skier on the tour, France's Bastien Midol, is coming to Utah 2019 with an impressive 161-point lead in the World cup standings.
He will be chased by teammate and Sochi 2014 Olympic champion Jean Frederic Chapuis, who recently became the most successful ski cross racer in World cup history.
On the women's side, reigning world champion Sandra Naeslund of Sweden will likely fight for a medal against PyeongChang 2018 medallists Kelsey Serwa and Brittany Phelan (gold and silver respectively).
**2019 World Cup Leaders**
Men: Bastien Midol (FRA)
Ladies: Marielle Thompson (CAN)
2018 Olympic Champions
Men: Brady Leman (CAN)
Ladies: Kelsey Serwa (Can)
2017 World Champions
Men: Victor Ohling Norberg (Swe)
Ladies: Sandra Naslund (Swe)
Moguls
Olympic champion Mikael Kingsbury of Canada will be the star of the men's event, aiming for a third world title.
Earlier this year at his home course of Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, the Canadian clinched his 54th World Cup victory, extending his record for most wins in the World Cup.
**2019 World Cup Leaders**
Men: Mikael Kingsbury (CAN)
Ladies: Perrine Lafont (FRA)
2018 Olympic Champions
Men: Mikael Kingsbury (CAN)
Ladies: Perrine Lafont (FRA)
2017 World Champions
Men: Ikuma Horishima (JAP)
Ladies: Britteny Cox (AUS)
The Championships programme - FIS World Championships, Utah 2019
1 February Snowboard Cross final (Solitude)
2 February Skicross final, Freeski big air final (Solitude)
3 February Team Snowboard Cross final (Solitude)
4 February Snowboard parallel giant slalom (Park City)
5 February Snowboard parallel slalom final, Snowboard big air final (Park City)
6 February Freeski slopestyle final, Freestyle aerials final (Deer Valley)
7 February Freestyle team aerials final (Deer Valley)
8 February Snowboard halfpipe final (Park City), Freestyle moguls final (Deer Valley)
9 February Freeski halfpipe final (Park City), Freestyle dual moguls final (Deer Valley)
10 February Snowboard slopestyle final (Park City)
