Revelstoke’s Separate Reality venue was host to Thursday’s Qualifier for the Swatch Freeskiing and Freeride World Tour.
With few spots up for grabs in Friday’s Day 1 of competition, skiers pushed the limits of big mountain freeskiing to earn their spot. Taking first out of 60 competitors in the Men’s field was Benjamin Ogilvie from Fernie,. In first place in the Women’s category Snowbird local Lexi Dupont from a stacked roster of 23 ladies.
“In today’s qualifier, it was definitely clear that skiers needed to step up in every aspect of the criteria; they had to have great technique, control and fluidity,” said Head Judge Jim Jack on the selective cut. Out of the deep qualifier field, 13 men and 4 women will advance to Day 1 competition on North Bowl’s Unlimited Assets tomorrow. “It was a very competitive cut, so congratulations to the skiers that made it in,” said Jack.
On the women’s side, athletes skied very smart and safe and 99 % of the competitors stayed on their feet. “Winner Lexi Dupont skied fast and fluid, with direct fall-line skiing,” remarked Announcer Max Kuszaj. “Its no surprise she is sitting in the top qualifying position going into day 1.” Canadian Crystal-Rose Lee was a close second. For the men, the majority of the skiers made the best use of the terrain and the style/creativity category by adding new-school tricks into their run, which benefited their scores. “A standout for me would be Fernie BC’s own Luke Nelson with his fast, fluid technical skiing on the top of Separate Reality, and smooth 360 at the bottom, encompassing all aspects we encourage in a competitor’s run,” said Kuszaj.
Skiers on the mountain Thursday experienced a mix of sun and snow with great conditions and visibility of the venue. “Conditions for this event are definitely shaping up to be some of the best we’ve had here at Revelstoke. The consistency of the snow will make landings cleaner and provides athletes a venue to showcase their abilities,” said Jack.
Tune in to www.freeskingworldtour.com for live non-stop action January 6-8.
Here’s the schedule for the next few days:
Friday, January 6: Day 1 Skiing
Saturday, January 7: Snowboarding
Sunday, January 8: Day 2 Skiing Finals
