The North Face® Freeski Open of New Zealand will get underway on Thursday 28 August with the weather gods promising blue skies and sunshine for the competition week ahead.

Slopestyle will be the first event on the schedule on Thursday followed by Halfpipe on Saturday 30 August. The Park and Pipe events will be hosted by Cardrona Alpine Resort, the official resort partner of the New Zealand Park & Pipe Team.

Jossi Wells in action this week at Cardrona Park

New Zealand’s top freeski athletes will be on the start list, including Olympians Janina Kuzma, Lyndon Sheehan, Anna Willcox, Jossi Wells, Byron Wells and Beau-James Wells. Jackson Wells will join his three older brothers making the NZ Freeski Open the first competition in which all four Wells brothers have competed together.

International names to watch out for in the Park and Pipe include the UK’s James ‘Woodsy’ Woods who placed fifth in men’s freeski slopestyle at the Olympic Winter Games in Sochi this year and Sweden’s Emma Dahlstrom who placed fifth in the women’s Olympic slopestyle.

Competition then moves to Queenstown’s The Remarkables ski field for the qualifying rounds of the Big Mountain, classified as a 3-star Freeride World Tour (FWT) Qualifying event. The North Face® Freeski Open of New Zealand is the only event in the world to hold Slopestyle, Halfpipe and Big Mountain in one.

The Kiwis will have a strong showing in the Big Mountain with Sam Smoothy the man to watch. Sam’s 2013/2014 northern hemisphere season was his most successful season yet having placed second on the 2014 FWT.

Sam Smoothy will be at the Big Mtn event next week

Canterbury’s Charlie Lyons who also competed on the 2014 FWT will be looking for a top result in the Big Mountain. While in the women’s field Janina Kuzma returns to her freeride roots competing in Big Mountain as well as the Halfpipe. Janina has won the NZ Freeski Open Big Mountain event six times and placed fifth in the Halfpipe at the Sochi Olympic Winter Games.

The finals of the Big Mountain are scheduled to take place at Wanaka’s Treble Cone ski field but weather and snow conditions will determine the schedule and venues. The Big Mountain has a scheduled window from 1-8 September for the two-day competition.

The North Face® Freeski Open of New Zealand celebrates its 10th year of competition in 2014. While the standard of competition across all disciplines will be exceptionally high, participants can still expect to enjoy the traditionally relaxed nature of this event as well as an exciting social schedule.

The Dion Newport Invitational (DNI) Disc Golf Competition has become a must-do on the social schedule and seasoned disc golf competitors and newbies are all welcomed at this fun event. The DNI will be held during the freeride week on a down day any where between the 1-7 September. Doubles and singles categories are available this year.

The North Face Freeski Open of New Zealand competition schedule may be subject to change but the provisional schedule is as follows:

• Wednesday 27 August – Park & Pipe bib collection at Cardrona Alpine Resort from 8am from Event Registration Desk. Rider briefing 3pm Noodle Bar, Cardrona Alpine Resort
• Thursday 28 August – Slopestyle qualifiers
• Friday 29 August – Slopestyle finals
• Saturday 30 August – Halfpipe qualifiers and finals
• Sunday 31 August – Park & Pipe weather day
• Sunday 31 August – Big Mountain bib collection at Gin & Raspberry, Ardmore Street, Wanaka 6 – 7.30pm. Rider briefing 7.30pm
• 1 – 7 September – Big Mountain qualifiers
• 2 – 8 September – Big Mountain finals
• 3 – 6 September – Weather days/ Dion Newport Invitational

Online registration will remain open for all three disciplines until 5pm Tuesday 26 August. Unless already full, late registration for Park and Pipe competitors will be available on Wednesday 27 August at the Cardrona Event Registration Desk, entry fees payable by cheque or cash. Late registration for the Big Mountain will be available, also subject to competitor numbers, on Sunday 31 August at the rider briefing at Gin & Raspberry. Competitors must be registered with FWT.

Click here to enter Park & Pipe events
Click here to enter Big Mountain

For further information visit www.nzfreeskiopen.com and follow us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/TNF.Freeski.Open