JAPAN FREERIDE OPEN is celebrating its 10th anniversary. February 8th, the first day of juniors will be held in the snow

2025/02/09

The JAPAN FREERIDE OPEN (hereinafter referred to as JFO) is now in its 10th year

After 10 years, it has now grown into a competition that many freeride skiers and snowboarders across the country aim to compete in, on a par with the FWT

The junior category was held on Saturday, February 8th at Hakuba Cortina Ski Resort/Hakuba Norikura Onsen Ski Resort

At 7:30 in the morning, as snow continued to fall, the athletes split into groups and received a briefing from their coaches

This season, there was plenty of snow since December, so there were few concerns about the slopes where the event would be held.
One concern was the presence of cracks, but the cold weather that continued into February brought ample snow to both ski resorts, eliminating those concerns.
Rather, the organizers were left with a lot of trouble deciding which slope would be best for the event.

The upper part of the course seen from Judge 1 area. Poles are set up over large cracks to warn spectators. Tree lines are spaced just right. Snow has accumulated at the base of the trees, making it ideal for jumping

The lower part of the course seen from Judge 1 area. There are several swells and drops on both sides of the gentle valley. When it becomes flat and light, it is difficult to see the slope, so it requires high overall skiing skills to predict the changes in the terrain while skiing

After carefully considering various conditions, the slope they chose was the eastern slope of Mt. Hieda, which lies above the Cortina 6 Pair Lift. Normally,
this is a no-skiing area outside of the controlled area, but in this area prepared just for JFO, the athletes can ski to their heart's content on the untracked slope.

What's more, the snowfall on the 6th and 7th brought a large amount of light snow. However, the snow quality was not too dense, making it ideal for ski and snowboard competitions. In the snow that was so thick it would blow up into their faces when they stepped firmly on their boards, the junior category skiers traced the terrain, making turns, flying over the terrain, and drawing their own lines

The photographers and videographers will be capturing the riders' riding. You can watch the footage at the judges' event on Sunday, February 9th, as well as on social media

Some kids pushed themselves beyond their limits. Some kids skied waist-deep snow for the first time. Some got to fully realize the results of their practice, and some didn't. Some kids were disappointed when their skis came off. Some kids beat their friends, some lost, some had fun skiing with their friends. Some kids enjoyed the powder. Some kids were able to ski smoothly

Almost all of the junior athletes managed to complete the slope, which even adults with their own aspirations would struggle with

I applaud everyone

Below are the podiums for each category. *In order of rank, name, and score

U18 SKI MEN

1 SHUN WASHIO 89.0
2 KOUGA TAKEDA 86.0
3 JIRO SUGIYAMA 79.3

U18 SNOWBOARD MEN

1 MUTSUHO NATSUME 82.7
2 YUKITO FUJIEDA 73.7
3 KIPPEI KATO 73.3

U18 SKI WOMEN

1 NAO MAKITA 72.3
2 ALICE JESSIEI ANDERSON 70.7
3 ICHINA TAKAHASHI 68.3

U18 SNOWBOARD WOMEN

1 JUNA YAMADA
2 HIRANO MIA
3 CHIHIRO ITO

U12 SKI MEN

1 AGEHA SHIMIZU 76.3
2 KASHIN HOU 63.7
3 PHILIPP NOVOSELTSEV 60.0

U12 SNOWBOARD MEN

1 OUSUKE MIYASHITA 80.0
2 SHINICHIROU ONO 77.3
3 JORDY BUTSON 73.7

U12 SKI WOMEN

1 SAYA CAMERON FUJIl 76.7
2 MADELEINE MILLER 71.7
3 REIA MIYAMOTO 64.7

U12 Women's Snowboard

Special Award

Left: Peak Performance/Best Grab Award, Seitaro Idachi | Center: THE NORTH FACE/Genius Award, Yuma Shibata | Right: TOYO TIRE/Speed Star Award, Soushi Ishikawa | Haglofs/Stomp Award, Finn Jacobsen

Tomorrow is the Open Class.
The slope will be the same as the Junior Class, the eastern slope of Mt. Hieda. The slope, including the avalanche protection, promises to be an exciting ride.

■See all JAPAN FREERIDE OPEN results here: https://japanfreerideopen.com/　
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