Winter Games NZ 2023 – Wrap Up
The 2023 edition of Winter Games NZ consisted of 15 world class events, held over 17 days across four incredible venues. Over 450 athletes from 38 nations descended on Cardrona Alpine Resort, Coronet Peak and The Remarkables to compete for Junior World Championship titles, Alpine World Cup yellow bibs, Freeride World Qualifier points and the Obsidian Edgar Challenge Trophy.
It was an epic two and a half weeks of action at the biggest snow sports event in the Southern Hemisphere - read more below!
FIS ANC Alpine Ski Racing
The FIS ANC Alpine Ski Racing programme was held at New Zealand's home of alpine ski racing, Coronet Peak. The programme opened with two Giant Slalom races held on the formidable Hurdle. With World Cup athletes competing against up and coming Kiwi skiers, it was quite the show.
Next on the programme was the FIS ANC Slalom races, the first of which was held on the ProAM slope, starting on the M1 and crossing under the Coronet Express chairlift. This marked the first time in almost two decades that a race of this level had been held on ProAm. Read more here.
The second slalom race was held on Race Arena, offering the athletes a new world class slope for the second race.
2023 FIS Park & Pipe Junior World Championships
The FIS Park & Pipe Junior World Championships presented by La Roche Posay and Cardrona were held on Cardrona Alpine Resort's world class slopestyle and big air venues. The slopestyle and big air Junior World Championship titles were hotly contested, with strong international fields showing up to fight for the title.
Slopestyle was first on the schedule, with fantastic finals day weather allowing the athletes to show the world what they are capable of. With two podiums for local Kiwi athletes, it was an exciting day for all involved.
The big air was held in near perfect conditions, with clear skies and barely a breath of wind on the 65-foot jump. The level of riding was impressive, with huge tricks being thrown down by both the men and the women.
The North Face Frontier 2* & 4* Freeride World Qualifier events
The North Face Frontier 2* and 4* events were held at New Zealand's home of Freeride, The Remarkables. The North Face Frontier 2* event boasted the biggest start list we have ever seen, with an incredible number of up and coming Kiwi athletes dropping into the Shadow Basin venue.
With The North Face Frontier 4* event also receiving a huge number of entries, the decision was made to expand the start list to include an additional 10 athletes. The star-studded international field put on a fantastic show as they skied, rode, dropped and flipped their way down the Alta Chutes.
OBSIDIAN - International Team Challenge
The final event of the 2023 Winter Games NZ was our inaugural International Obsidian Challenge. In 2020 and 2022 we held iterations of this homegrown creativity driven, athlete focussed event, but 2023 marked the first time we have hosted international athletes alongside the full Obsidian format.
We saw four incredibly talented teams from all four corners of the globe battle it out over three epic challenges - Big Air, Park Challenge and Backcountry Freestyle. Teams were awarded points throughout the event, using strategy and teamwork in what is usually an individual sport, with the overall lowest scoring team crowned the winners.
Big Air (read more here) and Park Challenge (read more here) were held at Cardrona Alpine Resort on their world class big air and in an epic custom built rail garden. The Backcountry Freestyle Challenge was held high in the Minaret Range on the ET face, accessed by helicopter with the help of Southern Lakes Heli Ski.
After three days of epic Challenges, Team Europe was crowned victorious and took home the coveted Obsidian Edgar Challenge Trophy
