U.S. Men Sweep in Secret Garden, Irving Third
The Stifel U.S. Freeski Team wrapped up their second World Cup of the season by sweeping the men's halfpipe podium, led by three-time Olympic slopestyle medalist Nick Goepper taking his first World Cup halfpipe victory Saturday at Genting Resort Secret Garden, China.
All eyes were on Goepper as he was the final rider to drop in the modified finals format that featured two runs instead of the customary three. Sitting just off the podium in fourth place behind teammates Alex Ferreira and David Wise in the top two spots after the first run, Goepper executed with precision and style to edge out Ferreira for the top spot with a massive score of 95.00.
Goepper is happy with the win but happier to just be on snow and working hard. After reflecting on his first halfpipe win, he said, “The journey is the best part. All the people are a part of it. I hope to show the world if you love what you do and believe in yourself you can make anything happen.”
The victory came in only his fifth halfpipe World Cup start. The win marks his seventh park & pipe podium (five slopestyle, one halfpipe) and his first time on the top step since the Seiser Alm, Italy slopestyle World Cup in 2018.
Despite pulling ahead early with a first-run score of 92.25, Ferreira, the defending FIS Park & Pipe Crystal Globe champion, finished in the day in second but maintained the overall FIS Park & Pipe World Cup lead. Two-time Olympic gold medalist David Wise rounded out the American sweep, earning his 18th career halfpipe podium with a score of 89.00.
Hunter Hess finished the day in fifth, Dylan Ladd in sixth, Cassidy Jarrell in tenth, Ben Fethke in 12th, Matt Labaugh in 13th, and Kai Morris in 16th.
On the women's side, Svea Irving was the lone American to qualify through to finals and earned a third-place finish with a solid third run score of 80.00. She shared the podium with China's Eileen Gu and Fanghui Li who both earned top spots in front of a home crowd.
Irving was very pleased with her result today, saying, "My main goal was to get redemption since the last time I was here I tore my ACL/MCL, so I really wanted to ski my best and leave healthy. I'm super hyped with the result and hyped with how I'm skiing. What an awesome event! I had so much fun!"
Head coach Mike Riddle is proud of everyone today, saying, "I’m super proud of how the whole team skied this week here at Secret Garden. Nick Goepper got his first Halfpipe win of his career and is looking strong for the season. Alex Ferreira kept his podium streak going with his technical prowess and Dave Wise with his first podium since his knee injury is huge. Svea Irving held it down on the women’s side with huge amp and smooth style and is looking poised to hit the podium repeatedly this year. Overall the team is skiing at an amazing level and looking to continue the strong showing in Copper."
The Stifel U.S. Freeski Team gets a well-deserved week off before returning to action in Copper Mountain, Colorado for the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix December 19-21.
