On Thursday, Sept 5, U.S. Ski & Snowboard and the Atlanta Braves announced the Visa Big Air presented by Land Rover at SunTrust Park December 20-21. Four-time X Games medalist Maggie Voisin (Whitefish, Mont.) as well as 2018 PyeongChang Olympic big air silver medalist Kyle Mack (West Bloomfield, Mich.) were on-site ahead of the Braves home game versus the Washington Nationals to celebrate the iconic new event. 

“We are here in Atlanta presented with an opportunity to put on an amazing event in a beautiful stadium with a high energy crowd,” said Voisin. “We were down on the field earlier watching practice and I could not help but imagine how the jump would look and how the crowd would react. It will be an incredible and fun event for both the athletes and the fans of Atlanta.”

Joining the athletes for the announcement was U.S. Ski and Snowboard President and CEO Tiger Shaw, Visa Vice President of Global Brand & Innovation Marketing Andres Polo, as well as President and CEO of the Atlanta Braves Derek Schiller, who shared his thoughts on welcoming U.S. Ski & Snowboard and the world of winter Olympic competition to their hometown. 

“This is a venue that we’ve built to host all kinds of entertainment activities,” said Schiller. “Just by walking around The Battery, you can see there is a lot going on. We do our best to make this a true entertainment destination. Of course, our primary business is baseball, but for the wintertime, we thought - what is the coolest event we can bring to SunTrust Park? I think this event definitely fits the bill.”

Voisin and Mack were in awe of the new SunTrust Park as well as The Battery Atlanta, the new lifestyle destination surrounding the stadium. The Atlanta Braves rolled out the red carpet experience for the athletes starting with a stadium tour including the Monument Garden. This area featured some of the franchise’s most prized memorabilia including a nine-foot statue of Braves legend Hank Aaron hitting his Babe Ruth-record-beating 715th home run. As Voisin and Mack acknowledged the strong history and foundation of the Braves organization, they looked forward to the new milestones freeskiers and snowboarders could reach this December at SunTrust Park.

Following the tour, Voisin and Mack were escorted to the infield for batting practice. Mack - a former baseball player himself - was itching to step up to the plate, but with a tight schedule and a focused Atlanta Braves Team dead set on making the playoffs, he would have to wait until December to put his athleticism on display. 

The athletes were then escorted to the press conference on the plaza green stage, complete with a snowy mountain landscape. As fans got ready for the evening's ball game, there was a strong sense of curiosity as to just what was about to take place. The sizzle reel rolled and Schiller introduced the event, it was clear Atlanta was ready for the world’s top freeskiers and snowboarders to descend on SunTrust Park. 

Voisin and Mack were both gifted an official Atlanta Braves jersey to wear to the evening’s game where an additional on-field announcement took place. The crowd erupted as Voisin explained what Atlanta should expect and also that she was about to experience her first-ever baseball game. 

Worlds will collide this Dec 20-21 at the Visa Big Air presented by Land Rover. The last stadium big air FIS World Cup competition to take place in the United States was at Boston’s Fenway Park in 2016, where U.S. Snowboard Team’s Julia Marino (Westport, Conn.) was victorious. Don’t miss your chance to see the world’s best at the Visa Big Air presented by Land Rover at SunTrust Park. Tickets on sale now at braves.com/VisaBigAir.

VISA BIG AIR PRESENTED BY LAND ROVER KEY FACTS

The Commitment
On the heels of snowboard big air’s debut in PyeongChang, freeskiers will make their first Olympic big air appearance at the Olympic Games Beijing 2022. The Visa Big Air Presented by Land Rover is part of a multi-year commitment by U.S. Ski & Snowboard to bring big air events to the masses in breathtaking new environments by hosting one city big air event per season leading into the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games.

Sanctioning
Visa Big Air presented by Land Rover is sanctioned as an International Ski Federation (FIS) World Cup for both freeskiing and snowboarding. The event will serve as the third and final big air World Cup of the season for both sports. This means the FIS big air overall championships and Crystal Globes will be on the line!

The Jump
The competition will take place on a 15-story tall steel scaffold jump structure, which is then covered with up to 800 tons of snow. Athletes will drop into an approximately 40-degree in-run, then launch themselves off the jump at speeds up to 40 miles per hour to perform their biggest tricks while traveling up to 70 feet in the air. The competition is judged on difficulty, amplitude, variety, and execution.

Athletes
U.S. Freeski Olympians Julia Krass (Hanover, N.H.) and Maggie Voisin (Whitefish, Mont.), as well as two-time Olympic medalist Nick Goepper are set to compete. In addition, Olympic gold medalists Red Gerard (Silverthorne, Colo.), Jamie Anderson (S. Lake Tahoe, Calif.) as well as the 2018-19 FIS Snowboard Overall Crystal Globe Winner Chris Corning (Silverthorne, Colo.) will represent the U.S. Snowboard Team. An elite international field will also be in attendance. 

Broadcast/Streaming Coverage
The Visa Big Air presented by Land Rover will be broadcast live Dec. 20-22 on NBCSN and NBC Sports, plus on live streaming platforms to be determined. As a FIS World Cup, the event will be seen by tens of millions worldwide through global broadcast distribution.

EVENT SCHEDULE
Visa Big Air
SunTrust Park, Atlanta, Ga., USA
Snowboard & Freeski Big Air FIS World Cup
December 18-21, 2019
*Subject to change

Friday, Dec 20
12:00 - 10:00 p.m. - Sponsor Village/Entertainment - The Battery
5:30 p.m. - Gates Open
6:00 - 6:45 p.m. - Men's and women's snowboard big air finals practice
7:00 - 8:30 p.m. - Men's and women's snowboard big air finals          

Saturday, Dec 21
12:00 - 10:00 p.m. - Sponsor Village/Entertainment - The Battery
5:00 p.m. - Gates Open
5:30 p.m. - Teton Gravity Research Premiere - “Fire on the Mountain” 
6:00 - 6:45 p.m. - Men's and women's freeski big air finals practice
7:00 - 8:30 p.m. - Men's and women's freeski big air finals

HOW TO WATCH
All times EST
*Same-day broadcast
**Next-day broadcast

SNOWBOARD
Friday, December 20
7:00 p.m. - Visa Big Air World Cup - SunTrust Park, Atlanta, Ga. - NBCSN

Saturday, December 21
4:00 p.m. - Visa Big Air World Cup - SunTrust Park, Atlanta, Ga. - NBC Sports**

FREESKI
Saturday, December 21
7:00 p.m. - Visa Big Air World Cup - SunTrust Park, Atlanta, Ga. - NBCSN

Sunday, December 22
3:00 p.m. - Visa Big Air World Cup - SunTrust Park, Atlanta, Ga. - NBC Sports**