Freestyle Yukon competed at Mount Sima to wrap up the training season and assess which Yukoners have potential to compete in national events The Yukon Freestyle Skiing Championships, an annual competition sanctioned by the sport’s national governing body, concluded at Mount Sima over the weekend, bringing together 22 young athletes from March 29 to 30. The Yukon Championships featured two freestyle skiing disciplines, with competitors launching off a large ramp at speed and navigating a park with rails bumps and jumps. Freestyle Yukon, the territory’s sporting governing body, prepares athletes for future competitions by hosting the Yukon Championships to wrap up the training season, which spans from December to April, according to board member Justin Boucher. “It definitely helps them psychologically so that when they do get to bigger events down south, they know what a competition is and what it is to perform when it matters, so it helps develop the athletes, for sure,” Boucher said. Yukoners competed in the Yukon Championships across age categories ranging from U10 to U16 in both the big air and slopestyle disciplines. Loic Revel, Cody Young and Jacob Fidler emerged as standout performers at the Yukon Championships, winning first place in both disciplines for U10, U12 and U16, respectively. Will Sutton claimed first in U14 big air, while Thomas Sutton secured first in slopestyle. The Yukon Championships revealed a significant gap in female participation, Boucher said. He added that the club is aiming to address this by launching a women’s program next year, striving to increase membership from current numbers to 10 or 15. Out of the club’s three female athletes, Rylan Morris emerged as the most competitive athlete during the U10 big air freestyle ski event. “We’re really trying to strive for women to join our club. We’re really looking forward to starting a women’s program next year,” Boucher said. Freestyle Yukon provides local freestyle skiers with opportunities to prepare for competitions nationwide across multiple provinces, including B.C., Alberta, Ontario and Quebec. The Yukon Championships offer the club’s coaches a chance to help assess and progress athletes toward future success, Boucher said. “If we feel like the kid has got first, second or third, as the association, we might move that kid up into the next upper program the following year,” Boucher said. Freestyle Yukon athletes from the club’s U14 and U16 age divisions represented the territory at the Junior Nationals freestyle skiing competition in Calgary from March 14 to 16, Boucher added. “The older kids will really help out the younger kids and help them get ready for the competition, especially if there’s Timber Tours that runs through B.C., and that’s specifically for 14 or below,” Boucher said. Athletes training with Freestyle Yukon hit Mount Sima for on-snow sessions from December to April. Additionally, trampolines and giant air bags are utilized to give beginners an opportunity to practice big jump aerial manoeuvres, reducing the risk of injury. “Throughout the year, training wise, we have our trampoline training room where kids learn aerial skills in a safe, dry environment. On-snow training occurs every weekend when Sima is open. We also use a giant airbag that Lotteries Yukon helped us purchase a few years back. Sima builds a big jump and the kids land on the soft airbag to learn their aerial tricks,” Boucher said.Contact Jake Howarth at jake.howarth@yukon-news.com
Yukon Freestyle Ski Championships wraps up at Mount Sima
