Just when it seems like the action is winding down in preparation for PyeongChang, the busy winter sports calendar continues towards the end of the month.
The biggest event this week is the X-Games in Aspen, Colorado which starts on Thursday. James Woods will be competing at the event for the sixth straight year while Izzy Atkin has been invited to her second event.
Alex Tilley and Dave Ryding both competed in alpine World Cups yesterday and the pre-Olympics season is not over yet with other events still to come.
Meanwhile Jasmin Taylor will be hoping to add to her impressive World Cup campaign when the telemark skiers take to their second competition in Vermont in the space of a week.
** Note: British skiers and snowboarders selected for Team GB will be announced on Thursday 25 January.
FIS Alpine World Cup, Kronplatz ITA – Tuesday 23 January
FIS Alpine World Cup, Schladming AUT – Tuesday 23 January
Delancey British Alpine skiers Dave Ryding and Alex Tilley were in World Cup action yesterday at events in Italy and Austria.
In the morning, Tilley competed in the giant slalom at Kronplatz, however she was unable to qualify for the second run after finishing 0.35 seconds outside the top 30. Tilley will race the World Cup giant slalom at Lenzerheide on the weekend and will also be joined in the slalom by Charlie Guest.
At ‘The Nightrace’ in Schladming, around 50,000 spectators were on hand to see one of the most anticipated slalom races of the season. Fresh from being the fastest down the mountain in the second run at Kitzbühel on Sunday, Ryding was 12th through the first run but was unable to improve that position after the second run. He currently sits ninth on the slalom World Cup overall standings.
Ryding will have his final pre-Olympics race at the Stockholm City Event next Tuesday where he finished fourth last year.
X-Games, Aspen USA – Thursday 25 to Sunday 28 January
The X-Games are an iconic event on the freeski and snowboard calendar and two GB Park and Pipe skiers will be in Aspen this week for the 2018 edition.
James Woods has been attending X-Games since 2013 and will this year be competing in both slopestyle and big air. Woods broke through for his first X-Games win last year in big air, and his best slopestyle result is third (Aspen 2013 and Oslo 2017).
Izzy Atkin was a late call-up to the competition last year but has certainly earned her invitation in 2018 following an impressive 12 months. Over the past year Atkin has scored two World Cup podiums including a victory at Silvaplana in March as well as bronze at the World Championships. She enters the ski slopestyle event on the back of a pair of third-places in Snowmass at the World Cup and Grand Prix events.
FIS Telemark World Cup, Sugarbush Resort USA – Wednesday 24 to Friday 26 January
Jasmin Taylor has reached the World Cup podium seven times from eight races this year and has three more chances to add to that total later this week.
On the weekend, Taylor picked up her first ever World Cup win along with a second and a third at Suicide Six Resort, and now she is hoping for more glory 50 miles further north at Sugarbush Resort.
She will be competing in the ladies’ Classic, Sprint and Parallel Sprint while Louis Hatchwell is in the men’s events.
