LAKE WANAKA, New Zealand (August 18, 2011) – American’s Gus Kenworthy and Devin Logan repeated their success at Winter Games NZ taking out back to back victories in both yesterday’s freeski halfpipe and today’s freeski slopestyle.

The Air New Zealand Freeski Slopestyle course at Snow Park included an urban rail set with three rail options for the first platform followed by a jib jump platform with a pole jam, tractor tyres and a 45 foot jump, next a 55/45 jump, a 65/55 jump and then finally the Air New Zealand Lily Pad at the bottom.

The men’s finals kept spectators at the edge of their seats with most of the field throwing clean linked left and right doubles and flips off the lily pad.

The first run saw Gus Kenworthy (USA), Jonas Hunziker (SUI) and Nicholas Goepper (USA) in the top three spots.

In the end it was Gus Kenworthy in the top position once again, with a first run score of 87.75 a score that proved hard to beat.

Kenworthy’s dub cork twelve mute on the first jump was a standout.  The flow of his run was incredibly technical with a rodeo six thirty off the cannon box straight into a double cork twelve sixty mute into a switch right ten tailgrab into a switch five forty onto the lily pad and a rodeo five forty out.

Having already switched focus to the next competition on his schedule Kenworthy said, “It felt great to win again today, fingers crossed I’ll do the same on Saturday in the Big Air.”

Gus Kenworthy's winning run.

In second was hometown boy Jossi Wells. “Jossi’s trick on the cannon box was unique and creative,” said judge Victoria Beattie. “He ollied on from the side with a four fifty off and then he went into a switch right side ten eighty tail grab to a switch left double cork ten and then he also did a switch 540 onto the lily pad with a nose butter five forty off.” Wells who also podiumed yesterday in second place, ended with a score of 83.00 today.

Rounding out the podium with 81.25 points was America’s Nicholas Goepper. Goepper was the only person in the top three who linked left and right doubles. It was his second run that bumped him into third taking the spot from Jonas Hunziker (SUI) who crashed on his second run.

The women’s field of ten elected to go straight to a three run final with AFP’s overall champion Logan topping the podium for the second day in a row having won yesterday’s halfpipe competition. 

“Her run today was solid,” said Beattie. “The cork seven was a stand out trick.”

Logan started her run with a lip slide to switchout on the downrail, then frontside to two seventy out on the up cannon box and then a switch five to cork seven to a straight on 360 out of the last feature and scored 79.75 points.

An amped Logan was thrilled with her win, “It was great to win again today as I have my sights set on both both the halfpipe and slopestyle disciplines at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.”

In second, it was Kim Lamarre, the top ranked slopestyle skier in today’s competition. Lamarre was tight on the heels of Logan with less than one point separating them. Her run which oozed with style included a lipslide to switch on the downrail and then switch on to switch out of the cannon rail to a switch five safety to a big five forty mute to switch one in to a one eighty out on the bottom lily pad.   She ended with 79.25 points just .5 off of Logan’s top score.

In third place was Canadian Dara Howell finishing her day with 70.5 points.

New Zealand’s up and coming skier Rose Battersby just missed the podium, skiing strongly and hitting the big side of the jumps with a big seven twenty on the final jump.  She’s someone to watch out for in the future.

For mor information log on to wintergamesnz.com

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