U.S. Ski & Snowboard announced the 14 athletes that will represent the U.S. Freeski Team at the 2023 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships in Bakuriani, Georgia, Feb. 19th - March 5th, 2023. 

The 2023 World Championship nominations include eight pro team and five rookie team freeskiers from across the U.S. With a total of five Winter Olympians and several athletes landing on the podium this season, the U.S. is headed into Georgia with strong talent and depth.

The World Championship team is highlighted by three-time Olympic medalist and two-time Olympic champion David Wise. Wise has had six World Championship starts, with one victory in Tryvann, Oslo, in 2013. Throughout Wise’s career, he has had 39 World Cup starts, with 18 podiums and 7 wins—every time Wise drops into the pipe he has a 46% chance of podiuming in the contest. As a veteran of the sport, the 32 year old is still giving his competitors a run for their money, with a World Cup podium and an X Games gold in this season alone. 

This year’s World Championships team also features Olympians Alex Ferreira, who was atop the podium in first place at the Snow Rodeo World Cup in Calgary, Canada, along with teammate Hanna Faulhaber, who earned third place for the women at the same event. Rookie team member Troy Podmilsak took home the third-place trophy at the first big air event of the season in Chur, Switzerland, as well as another rookie, Tristan Feinberg, who placed in the top five at the most recent Toyota U.S. Grand Prix at Mammoth Mountain, CA. 

2023 X Games big air gold medalist and X Games slopestyle silver medalist Mac Forehand is also on the 2023 World Champions roster and is looking to add more to his already successful season. Plus, slopestyle skier Rell Harwood has proven her comeback from an ACL injury by placing 9th in Mammoth. Both Forehand and Harwood will be joined by teammates, Cody Laplante, Hunter Henderson and Grace Henderson. Rookie member and X Games bronze medalist Svea Irving, the 2023 U.S. national champion, will be competing alongside three-time Olympian and World Champion Brita Sigourney, as well as rookie team member Riley Jacobs. Dylan Ladd of the professional halfpipe team will round out the men’s World Championships team.  

“The U.S. Freeski Team is looking forward to bringing a great mix of veteran and up-and-coming athletes to compete at the highest level in a new location that has invested in these sports and the skiing community as a whole,” said Freeski Director Skogen Sprang. “We look forward to showcasing our sports on the global stage and bringing creativity to the table.”

This year’s Freeski World Championships will begin with men’s and women’s slopestyle, with finals going down on Feb. 28. Next, halfpipe finals will be on March 4, and big air finals will close out World Champs on March 5. Fans can follow all of the action in Georgia live on Peacock and skiandsnowboard.live with tape-delayed action on NBC and CNBC.

2023 FIS FREESTYLE SKI WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS TEAM 

(hometown; club; USASA series; birthdate; previous World Championship teams)

*Denotes first World Championships team

Women’s Halfpipe Ski Team: 

• Hanna Faulhaber (Carbondale, Colo.; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 9/04/04; 2021)
• Svea Irving (Winter Park, Colo.; Winter Park Freeride Team; Rocky Mountain Series; 2/27/02; 2021)
• Brita Sigourney (Carmel, Calif.; Intermountain Series; 1/17/90; 2011, 2017, 2019, 2021)
• Riley Jacobs (Oak Creek, Colo.; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 8/14/2003)* 

Men’s Halfpipe Ski Team: 

• David Wise (Reno, Nev.; 6/30/90; 2009, 2011, 2013, 2017, 2019, 2021)
• Alex Ferreira (Aspen, Colo.; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club; Aspen/Snowmass Series; 8/14/94; 2019, 2021) 
• Tristan Feinberg (Aspen, Colo.; Rocky Mountain Series; 4/23/2003)*
• Dylan Ladd (Lakewood, Colo.; Winter Park Competition Center; Rocky Mountain Series; 8/29/01)*

Women’s Slopestyle Ski Team: 

• Grace Henderson (Madbury, N.H.; Waterville Valley BBTS; New Hampshire Series; 4/28/01)*
• Rell Harwood (Park City, Utah; Park City Ski & Snowboard; Big Mountain West Series; 6/1/01; 2021)

Men’s Slopestyle Ski Team: 

• Mac Forehand (Winhall, Vt.; Stratton Mountain School; Southern Vermont Series; 8/4/01; 2019, 2021) 
• Troy Podmilsak (Park City, Utah; Park City Ski & Snowboard; Big Mountain West Series; 8/23/2004)*
• Hunter Henderson (Madbury, N.H.; Waterville Valley BBTS; New Hampshire Series; 12/28/2002)*
• Cody LaPlante (Truckee, Calif.; Squaw Valley Freestyle and Freeride Team; North Tahoe Series; 2/15/02; 2021)

2023 FIS Freeski World Championships Live Coverage Schedule
All times EST
Check local listings, subject to change

Feb. 28, 2023
4:00 a.m. – men’s and women’s freeski slopestyle – Peacock, skiandsnowboard.live

March 4, 2023
1:00 a.m. – men’s and women’s freeski halfpipe – Peacock, skiandsnowboard.live

March 5, 2023
1:00 a.m. – men’s and women’s freeski big air – Peacock, skiandsnowboard.live

Follow The U.S. Freeski Team 

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Twitter: @usskiteam

U.S. Freeski Team athlete Birk Irving (Winter Park, Colo.) had a very successful weekend at the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix at Mammoth Mountain by not only winning the men’s halfpipe contest, but walking away with the National Championship award and the coveted FIS Halfpipe Ski World Cup Crystal Globe. 

Following the celebration of life of a fellow friend, husband, and U.S. Freeski Team athlete Kyle Smaine, Irving ultimately dedicated his finals day to Smaine. With Smaine there in spirit, Irving won his third contest of the season and took home his first-ever Crystal Globe. 

“I think it meant a lot to me because it was the first year that I gave it a real effort as well as had the potential to get the globe. Finals day itself was super special to me as well because I was surrounded by family, friends, and the warm spirit of Kyle. Yeah… it was just a super fulfilling moment for me.”

Irving scored a score of 94.00 (out of 100) to earn the top spot on the podium. In second place with a 93 was Canadian competitor Brendan Mackay, and rounding it out in 3rd was U.S.’s own David Wise with a 91.25. 

Irving was already the FIS points halfpipe leader heading into the Mammoth. In the 2022-23 season, Irving earned a second and sixth in the Calgary World Cups, first at the Copper Toyota U.S. Grand Prix, and took home an X Games silver medal. Irving will complete the World Cup tour 48 points above competitor Brendan Mackay, and 120 points above U.S. teammate Alex Ferreira. 

Additionally, with Irving’s Crystal Globe win, he and his younger sister, Svea Irving both earned the National Champion award for the U.S. Grand Prix World Cup Tour. Svea had an exceptional season, with a fourth place result at the Copper Toyota U.S. Grand Prix, a fifth and tenth place result in Calgary and a X Games bronze. 

Up next, the Irving siblings will compete in the Halfpipe World Championship in Bakuriani, Georgia, Feb. 19th - March 5th.

Birk Irving and David Wise were first and second in the wind-blown freeski halfpipe finals at the 2023 Toyota U.S. Grand Prix at Mammoth Mountain. 

When many thought the contest would be canceled due to high winds at Mammoth Mountain, the athletes still dropped into the pipe for the halfipipe finals. After a beautiful tribute to former U.S. Freeski Team athlete Kyle Smaine, where hundreds of current and former athletes, family and friends descended the pipe together, the contest went on.

“We’re all skiing the best we have because we’re all skiing with Kyle in our hearts,” said Irving. “We’re skiing for him and we know he’s looking down on us - we miss you Kyle, we love you, thank you for keeping us safe in the pipe today.”

The winds calmed down enough for us to have a contest. Overall, I was proud of Birk and Brendan (Mackay) for coming out and giving it there all and I think we had a good showing for the sport of freeski halfpipe,” said Wise.

Three trips down, Wise and Irving came out on top. Irving did not only win the day, he also won the crystal globe and the National Championship trophy making it a hat trick of success for his day.

Tristan Feinberg was right behind Wise, finishing the day in fourth place, with teammate Aaron Blunk in sixth.

For the women, Svea Irving and Hanna Faulhaber were the only U.S. Freeski Team athletes to compete in the women’s final. Faulhaber finished the day in fifth, and Irving was seventh. Irving also is ending the domestic World Cup schedule with a National Championship trophy, along with her brother, Birk.

RESULTS

Men

Women

At only 21 years old, Mac Forehand beat out the veterans of the sport when he landed a perfect 2160 Cuban in the men's ski big air contest at the 2023 X Games. 

Forehand, who won the X Games silver medal the day before in men's ski slopestyle, still had something left in his bag for the second-to-last competition of the X Games. With four attempts of the big air jump, Forehand never ventured out of the top three. In the strong field of 10 competitors, including teammates Alex Hall and Troy Podmilsak, Forehand had what it took to win. 

Alex Hall, who won the event in 2022, threw tricks that only AHall can do. Off the jump, Hall put down a switch dub 14 to knuckle switch butter 3. At the end of the night, Hall finished in seventh. Troy Podmilsak, a Rookie Team athlete, showed he deserved to be there. Before the contest even started, TPod landed a worlds-first switch dub bio 1980. An unbelievable feat for the rookie, Podmilsak is leaving his first X games with a sixth place. 

But the night went to Forehand. On the last jump of the night, Forehand landed a 2160 Cuban, meaning he spun through the air five and a half times while grabbing the back tip of his ski. Landing the trick perfectly, the crowd went wild. Forehand skied to the bottom of the jump with his head in his hands, waiting for his score, in complete disbelief. Seconds later, a 50 showed up on the screen - a perfect score. Forehand, with the X Games gold medal around his neck now looks forward to the next contest at Mammoth Mountain later this week. 

David Wise won X Games gold to close out the 2023 X Games in Aspen, Colo. Wise, who has competed in over 14 X Games, is once again walking away from the event with another gold medal in his bag. Under the lights of Buttermilk Mountain, the men's SuperPipe was the last event of the busy X Games schedule. With tens of thousands of fans surrounding the 22-foot-tall halfpipe, U.S. Freeski Team athletes Wise, Birk Irving, Alex Ferreira and Aaron Blunk put on a show. 

With four chances to land a perfect run, it was anyone's game. Through the first run, Wise landed all his tricks and was showing serious amplitude and creativity. Next up was hometown favorite Alex Ferreira. Uncharacteristically of Ferreira, he hit the deck of the pipe on his last hit and fell while attempting his left double cork 1620. After a minute or so on the ground, he skied down safely. But on the second run, it happened again and he eventually pulled out of the contest. Ferreira now focuses on the next contest at Mammoth Mountain. 

Irving, who is coming away from a second place the week before in Calgary, Canada showed the crowd he was ready to go big. With a clean double flat spin 720 in the middle of his run and ending with a left dub 1440, Irving ended up in second place, securing an X Games silver medal. The night before, his sister, Svea Irving, won X Games bronze in the women's ski SuperPipe - closing out a successful weekend for the Irving siblings. 

Aaron Blunk, known by the X Games community as the only skier to throw five doubles in all four directions in his run in 2022, went big. On Blunk's last trip through the pipe, it looked like he was in the right position to knock Jon Sallinen out of third place but just came up short, ending the night in fourth place. 

But the night was ultimately won by Wise. Wise is now a five-time X Games gold medalist, having won the event in 2012, 2013, 2014, 2018 and now 2023. Wise, whose run included a switch right 900 tail, switch left double cork 1080 japan, a right 900 tail and finished with mirror back-to-back dub 12 mutes, he had enough to secure the first place position. 

Now, the U.S. Freeski and Snowboard Teams are in Mammoth Mountain for the 2023 Toyota U.S. Grand Prix. 

RESULTS

U.S. Freeski Team athlete Svea Irving went big in the SuperPipe on Saturday night and ended the evening on the podium for the first time in her professional career. 

Irving came to the X Games as an alternate and left with a bronze medal. This is not only Irving's first X Games medal, it is her first ever podium at the professional level. As an alternate, you are not guaranteed a starting position. For Irving, she found out the night before the contest that she would have the opportunity to drop in, and she took it.

With the heavy snowfall significantly slowing down the pipe for all athletes, she managed to find her speed and amplitude and landed a very technical combo of tricks that eventually led her to be in the top three overall. On her final run through the pipe, matched with screams from the thousands of fans, Irving landed the alleyoop flat five to cork nine combo and walked away with an X Games Bronze. 

"I just won my first bronze medal at any big event ever," said Irving in disbelief. "I am absolutely speechless but very grateful to be on the podium with such great athletes. I am just so stoked to be here!" 

Along with Irving, teammates Hanna Faulhaber and Brita Sigourney also competed. Faulhaber, who won X Games Bronze at last years competition, ended the night in fifth and Sigourney, who has competed in 14 X Games in her career, was seventh. Zoe Atkin of Great Britain won Gold and Rachael Karker of Canada was Silver. 

Now Irving and the rest of the team, both men and women, travel to the west coast for the U.S. Toyota Grand Prix at Mammoth Mountain. 

RESULTS

Colby Stevenson was first and Mac Forehand second for the men's ski slopestyle contest on the second day of the X Games. Despite heavy snow that significantly slowed the skiers down throughout the four runs, Stevenson continued to raise the bar after every lap through the course. 

Of the 10 athletes competing, three were from the U.S. Freeski Team: Colby Stevenson, Alex Hall and Mac Forehand. Forehand secured his second X Games medal of his career with a silver in today's contest and was left speechless.

"I just walked away with a silver medal," said Forehand. "I can't really put what I'm feeling into words right now. I'm just so excited. Onto big air tomorrow night, let's go!"

This is the third X Games gold medal and second slopestyle medal of Stevenson's career. Last night, he was third in the men's ski knuckle huck. "This fuels the fire," he said. "Days like this, when I go out and put down my best runs - it makes me want to keep doing it until I can't. This is what dreams are made of baby!"

On a course that was tight, technical and did not provide any room for error, the athletes knew they had to land their tricks and get their rotations around. This type of course played to Stevenson's strengths as he performs best when he can get into his "flow state" and not have much time to think. 

Onto the next. Forehand and Hall will compete in the big air contest tomorrow to wrap up X Games and Stevenson will pack up to head to the next contest at Mammoth Mountain for the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix. 

The first of three days of unrivaled X Games competition wraps up in Aspen with strong results in the women's ski big air, men's ski knuckle huck and men's snowboard. 

For the women, history was made in the women's ski big air when Canadian skier Megan Oldham landed the first ever triple 14 mute in competition. With the crowd going wild, Oldham officially cemented her place in history as the first ever woman to land this trick in a contest. On the U.S. side, Grace Henderson was the lone American, but made noise when she successfully landed two tricks that she had never attempted in competition and ended up seventh overall. Henderson, who was left speechless after nailing the landing, said, "I am so stoked to be out here at X Games - this is my first one and I landed two tricks I've never done before and landed them both here under the lights with my parents and friends in the crowd... it's just amazing. I cannot believe I am here."

Next was the much-anticipated men's ski Knuckle Huck, an event judged on originality, difficulty, creativity, style and trajectory. Returning X Games champion and Olympic gold medalist Alex Hall was back in the start gate along with teammates Olympic medalist Colby Stevenson, Alex Hackel and Quinn Wolferman. In classic Knuckle Huck fashion, there was 19 minutes of chaos with all athletes getting in as many runs as possible. With the snow falling heavier by the second, each athlete threw tricks that not only made the crowd go wild but defied gravity in the process. At the end of the contest, Jesper Tjader from Norway won the night and the top U.S. spot went to Colby Stevenson who ended the contest on the podium in third.

To close out a busy day, the snowboard SuperPipe welcomed the best riders in the world to Aspen. Lucas Foster was the only U.S. man in the lineup, but proved to be a top contender when he threw down serious amplitude and technical tricks throughout his four laps through the pipe. With a weather delay due to heavy snow stopping competition for a brief time, the pipe may have been slow but the tricks were not. At the end of the night, Scotty James of Australia took his 5th X Games win. Foster ended the day in eighth.

Catch the action tomorrow, Saturday, Jan. 28, LIVE on X Games YouTube and broadcast tape delay on ESPN/ABC. 

Schedule

Jan. 28, 2023

• Men's Ski Slopestyle
• Women's Snowboard SuperPipe
• Women's Ski SuperPipe
• Women's Snowboard Big Air
• Men's Snowboard Big Air

Jan. 29, 2023

• Women's Ski Slopestyle
• Men's Snowboard Slopestyle
• Snowboard Knuckle Huck
• Men's Big Air
• Men's Ski SuperPipe

Three-time Olympic medalist Nick Goepper announced that he is retiring from competitive freeskiing.

“With great excitement and emotion I’d like to announce my retirement from full time competition,” posted Goepper, age 28, on Instagram. “Starting today would have been my 12th @xgames Aspen. Reminiscing over the last 10+ years of spinnin’ to win it has truly been the biggest blessing what this sport has given me. I could never express enough appreciation for the support of my sponsors, family, friends, coaches, and countless other supporters.”

Goepper hails from an unconventional spot for a professional skier—a small ski hill in Indiana called Perfect North Slopes, far from the mountains where many of his compatriots grew up, where he sold candy bars to pay for ski passes.

Goepper’s first World Cup podium came in 2013, and he dominated the field for the greater part of the next decade. He competed in three Olympic Games—Sochi 2014, PyeongChang 2018 and Beijing 2022—and medaled in all three of them. He won a silver in slopestyle in Sochi, sweeping the podium with teammates Joss Christensen and Gus Kenworthy, a silver in slopestyle in PyeongChang and a bronze in slopestyle in Beijing, standing on the podium with teammate Alex Hall. He also won two medals in the FIS World Championships: a bronze in 2013 in Voss-Myrkdalen, Norway and another bronze in 2019 in Park City.

Since the 2022 Olympics, Goepper has begun commentating at elite freeski and snowboard events, such as the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix at Copper Mountain in December. He also competed at the World Skate Games 2022 in November, where he scored a top 10 finish in inline skating.

Congratulatory messages poured into Goepper’s announcement—from U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team teammates to competitors from other countries to sponsors, meme accounts and more.

“With great pleasure I can’t wait to watch the next generation take over and put freeskiing on a global stage,” Goepper continued. “What’s next? Who knows. I’ll still be skiing, I’ll still be around.”

Dr. J. Richard Steadman, famed orthopedic surgeon from the Vail Valley and founder and champion of U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s medical program, passed away on Friday, Jan. 20 at age 85.

One of the most talented surgeons in sports medicine history, many U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team athletes throughout the years owe their careers to Steadman. He was an award-winning innovator in his field and became a legend for his pioneering approach that got world class athletes back on snow ready to perform at their best. 

“Dr. Steadman has been revolutionary in the sports of skiing and snowboarding, and has left a lasting impression on the sports and athletes he cared for throughout his career,” said U.S. Ski & Snowboard President & CEO Sophie Goldschmidt. “U.S. Ski & Snowboard has been partnered with the Steadman Clinic and the Steadman Philippon Research Institute for decades, which has allowed our athletes to maximize their careers and do what they love at the highest level.”

Steadman earned his medical degree from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in Dallas in 1963 and went on to work in South Lake Tahoe, California as an orthopedic surgeon at Barton Memorial Hospital. When he volunteered his services at an Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup in Heavenly Valley in 1973, a long and successful relationship with the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team began. 

Steadman pioneered significant improvements in post-surgical rehabilitation developing novel exercise protocols that shook the foundations of sports medicine. In 1974, U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team Olympic medalist alpine skier Cindy Nelson became the first elite skier to be treated by Dr. Steadman. Nelson would undergo 11 surgeries in her 14-year career, without ever missing a full season. Legions of U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team athletes coursed through Tahoe over the next decades before Nelson, working as Vail’s Director of Skiing, and former Vail Associates owner George Gillett persuaded Steadman to leave Lake Tahoe in 1990 with the promise of expanded research, treatment and training facilities in Vail.

Steadman treated well over 22,000 patients during the course of his 40-year career in Tahoe and Vail. In addition to members of the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team, the list includes such legendary athletes as tennis greats Martina Navratilova, Monica Seles and Billie Jean King, NFL Hall of Famers Dan Marino and Bruce Smith, musicians Judy Collins and Rod Stewart and global soccer sensations Cristiano Ronaldo and Lothar Matthaeus. Steadman became a consultant to the Denver Broncos and Colorado Rockies while serving as U.S. Alpine Chief Physician at nine consecutive Olympic Winter Games from 1976 through 2006.

Steadman championed U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s Sports Medicine program, chairing U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s Medical Committee and working alongside the first medical director Melinda Roalstad, MS, PAC. Dr. Steadman was a constant source of support for the department providing consultation, mentorship and guidance at every turn. 

“Dr. Steadman affected every aspect of U.S. Ski & Snowboard throughout his career—from his world-renowned medical care to forging our medical program and chairing our medical committee, to helping formulate our foundational sports medicine policies and procedures,” said U.S. Ski & Snowboard Director of High Performance Gillian Bower. “His vision of athlete health and wellbeing will continue to have broad impact on both the athletes and our Sports Medicine Department. His generosity with his talents, time and passion for our sports will live on within our organization in perpetuity.”  

Steadman’s internationally renowned advanced surgical protocols and innovations include: Microfracture, a procedure that repairs the damaged joint and encourages the regrowth of articular cartilage; Healing Response, an arthroscopic alternative to full knee reconstruction; and The Package, a collection of arthroscopic procedures performed in a single operation, for which Steadman received a research award in 2012.

Today, the Steadman Philippon Research Institute (SPRI) in collaboration with the doctors of the Steadman Clinic, is known worldwide for its unprecedented clinical database and research into orthopedic injuries of the knee, hip, shoulder, ankle and spine.

Dr. Steadman’s pioneering spirit, surgical prowess, revolutionary advancements and uncommon devotion to treating the whole patient leaves a distinctive and lasting impact in the field of sports medicine, in the lives of everyday people and across many pro sports, particularly the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team.