Seventy men and eighteen women took to Mammoth Mountain’s Unbound slopestyle setup for the first stop of the 2016 U.S. Grand Prix today. The event kicked off with a best-of-two run qualification round, where the athletes battled it out for a chance to shred in the main event. Mother Nature was sure to provide clear skies, while Mammoth’s park crew and event organizers were sure to provide a near-perfect setup, and the athletes came ready to throw down—creating the perfect recipe for a rocking slope competition.
The athletes set the tone for the day with an impressive semifinals round. Each of the men and women put down their best runs, providing an action-packed morning of skiing for the California crowd, however, only sixteen men and eight women would advance. Highlights during the qualifying runs were provided by American Bobby Brown with a massive triple cork on the final jump. Also, top men’s qualifier Øystein Bråten displayed some incredibly technical and clean skiing on each of his laps, earning the highest score of the day. As for the ladies, German Lisa Zimmerman set the bar high by linking some big spins and masterful rail tricks.
Photo: U.S. FreeskiingHowever, the tides turned when it came to finals (as far as the leaderboard was concerned). For the men, Olympic champion Joss Christensen owned the top spot on the podium after his first run in finals. Christensen woo’d the judges with three smooth rails, and linked a switch right double cork 1080 with a switch left double cork 1080 to earn a high score of 89.00.
Nabbing the second position on the podium today was Utah-native McRae Williams. Williams showcased his naturally smooth style throughout the course and busted out one of the biggest spins of the day, a switch triple cork 1440 safety. His second place run earned a score of 88.40.
Rounding out the podium today was Norwegian Øystein Bråten. The twenty-year-old was the final competitor through the course today and landed his run in the clutch. Bråten scored an 86.40 thanks to a series of difficult rail tricks and three massive double corks with locked grabs.
Other noteworthy performances from the day came from Bobby Brown, Evan McEachran and Russ Henshaw.
Men’s Slopestyle Results
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Click here for complete results.
As for the ladies, Canadian Yuki Tsubota claimed the top spot on the podium today. Tsubota included a front 450 out of a rail and linked a left cork 720 tail to right 540 mute on the jumps, earning a score of 84.40.
“Over the holidays I learned a couple new rail tricks and just felt really comfortable with them,” Tsubota stated following her victory. “I’m exstatic right now. I’m just so happy. I’ve never won a contest like this.”
Photo: Melanie HardingJoining Tsubota on the podium today was Swiss rider Giulia Tanno and Swede Emma Dahlström.
Other notable performances on the day came from German rider Lisa Zimmerman, Tiril Sjaastad Christensen and Nikki Blackall.
Women’s Slopestyle Results
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Click here for complete results.
The slopestyle competition marks the end of the 2016 Mammoth U.S. Grand Prix event. We’d like to congratulate all of the athletes on a successful week. We will look forward to watching the rest of this year’s U.S. Grand Prix tour unfold. Note: The next stop of the Grand Prix will be held at Park City Mountain Resort February 2-6.
Related: Ayana Onozuka tastes victory amid inclement weather at the Mammoth Grand Prix
