Calgary (AB), Canada – China’s Xuetong Cai and Ryo Aono of Japan each won the season’s fourth halfpipe contest of the 2011 LG Snowboard FIS World Cup, which wrapped up Saturday’s double event at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary. Both extended their lead in the race for the Crystal Globe.nJust as in Quebec City a week earlier, Cai defeated Australia’s Holly Crawford and Japan’s Haruna Matsumoto, who finished in second and third, respectively. On the men’s side, Australia’s Nathan Johnstone and Yiwei Zhang of China rounded out the podium that was led by Aono.
The 20-year-old Japanese rider from Matsuyama clinched his career’s eight World Cup win, the second consecutive one, after falling in his first run of the finals. He came back to impress both spectators and judges with a huge backside 540 to kick off his winning run, adding a frontside 1080 to cab 720, frontside air and backside 900 to finish things off.
“Ryo’s run was just unreal,” Johnstone acknowledged right after the finals. Moments earlier, the reigning World Champion, who had been leading the pack after the first run, had tried to find the right response to Aono’s run but failed. Some flat landings made it impossible for the 21-year-old to better the score he had earned in his first run for back-to-back 720’s, back-to-back 900’s and a final frontside air.
“It would have been nice staying first, but after the result of Quebec last week I’m pretty happy being second,” added Johnstone who, despite losing further ground to Aono for the World Cup title, remained optimistic. “I hope I can tie on to this. It will be a tough fight to get Ryo in the end but I hope I can make it.”
U.S. Snowboarding rookie Matt Ladley, of Steamboat Springs, Colo., finished just off the podium in fourth.
“It was a really good opportunity to come up and compete against that World Cup level competition,” said U.S. Snowboarding Rookie Coach Spencer Tamblyn of the U.S. riders. “I’m super pleased with their performance.”
“I struggled a little bit in practice, but I was able to put together to clean runs and land them in the contest,” said Ladley.
The only Canadian to compete was four-time reigning National Champion Brad Martin from Ancaster, Ontario. Martin’s qualifying run of 23.6 sealed him a spot in the finals, yet he was unable to land a run in Saturday’s competition, finishing in tenth spot.
“It sucks to make it to the finals and not land a run,” remarked Martin. “Thanks to all the sponsors that put this World Cup on and helped us get here.”
On the women’s side, Cai brought home her season’s third win and fourth overall. Having cumulated 3,800 points so far this season, the 17-year-old sits comfortably on top of the table, 1,700 points ahead of Crawford with only two more events to come in Bardonecchia, Italy and Arosa, Switzerland.
Cai earned victory with a method air to back-to-back 540’s, frontside 720 and cab 360. Crawford tried to attack Cai’s score in her second run, but the reigning World Champion from down under wasn’t able to achieve her goal.
“I wanted to do back-to-back 720’s but lost speed after my first 720 and fell after my frontside 540,” Crawford explained. “But there is more to come and I hope to stay on top of the podium soon.”
Kelly Marren, of Hollsborough, Calif., spearheaded the U.S. women in eighth.
The LG Snowboard FIS World Cup continues next weekend in Moscow with a parallel slalom scheduled in the Russian capital. The finals will be held under the lights. Halfpipe riders will head to Bardonecchia, Italy March 10-13 for the next stop on the halfpipe World Cup tour.
OFFICIAL RESULTS
FIS World Cup
Calgary, Alberta – Feb. 26, 2011
Halfpipe Snowboarding
Men
1. Ryo Aono, Japan
2. Nathan Johnstone, Australia
3. Yiwei Zhang, China
Women
1. Xuetong Cai, China
2. Holly Crawford, Australia
3. Haruna Matsumoto, Japan
