Snowboarding News - September 2006

<

1 2 3 >

Vancouver, BC – The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) passed another major milestone today as it officially launched its search for the designer of the official Olympic and Paralympic Games mascot(s).

Artists from around ... Read Full Story the world now have the opportunity of a lifetime: to design a mascot(s) that will achieve worldwide fame while also achieving a defining professional accomplishment. The mascot(s) will feature prominently in hundreds of Games communications and materials from advertising and publications to websites and merchandise. The mascot(s) will also act as the ‘real-life’ ambassador for the Games, appearing in animated films and at various events around the country and during the Games.

“The Vancouver 2010 Winter Games mascot(s) will be among the most recognizable and colourful personalities of Canada’s Games and will embody our nation’s culture and values,” said VANOC Chief Executive Officer John Furlong. “They will become cherished icons – especially for children – and symbols of our Games, our country, and our moment on the world stage. We don’t know who will design the mascot(s), but we’re looking … and we’re looking for the very best!”

All Canadians have the opportunity to engage in the mascot(s) development program, through information and surveys posted to the popular vancouver2010.com website. Furlong enthusiastically encouraged citizens from across the country to speak up and be heard: “Each and every Canadian will have an opinion on the mascot(s) once they are produced, so we want people to start thinking about it and discussing it now. What best represents Canada as the host of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games? We want to know!”

Design applicants can find the Request for Proposal (RFP) on a specially created section of the Vancouver 2010 website: vancouver2010.com/mascot.

 

---

This year's Marmot Extreme Skiing and Snowboarding Comp wrapped up yesterday with several explosive performances from male and female categories in their respective sports.

In the female category in snowboarding, Maria Kuzma put out a pair of consistent runs to finish first with ... Read Full Story 38.8 points. She managed to get a 17.8 in her first run to lead by just two points over Ann Paterson. In her second run, Kuzma finally left the opposition behind by leading by almost 8 points with a score of 21, while Paterson came in closest with only a 13.8.

Meanwhile, in the male category, Robbie Walsh stepped up from a second-place finish in his first run to get a total of 53 points. In his first run, Willie Beggs edged Walsh with 29 points. But when the second round came, Beggs dropped to 8th place with 15.4 while Walsh improved his performance with a 27.4 to secure his victory.

In the skiing comp, another Kuzma captured the crown in the female category. Janina Kuzma finished with a 58.4 but almost lost her chance of winning the competition when she dropped several points in the second run. She scored an impressive 32.8 in her first run, but only had 25.6 in the second run to trail Tess Pirie who had 28.6. Fortunately for Kuzma, her first run score was enough to give her a comfortable lead for the win.

Geoff Small, on the other hand, finished first in the male category. He managed to gather a total of 80.8 points to edge Hamish Acland who settled for a second-place finish. Acland led by a very narrow margin in the first run when he scored a 39.8 against Small’s 39.2. But Small bounced back in the second run where he got a 41.6 while Acland only had a 30.2.

More information is available at www.mtruapehu.com/extremecomp.

 

---

Jamie Nicholls has truly made his mark on the snowboarding industry, proven with continuing podium placements in respected competitions. Most impressively, at just 13 years old, he took 1st place in the Senior Men’s category at the 2006 Orange AIM Series held at the British Indoor Slope ... Read Full Story style Championship in Glasgow, Scotland last 5th August.

Nicholls performed a super technical run in the said competition including a 270 on to backside lipslide on the down rail and a cab 270 on 270 off over the box to take the overall men’s title. With that, he didn’t only edge out his opponents but also set another British record in snowboarding.

After that, Nicholls also dominated the following AIM Series leg held at Milton Keynes on the 19th by getting a 1st place in the Junior category.

As if it weren’t enough, the 13-year-old competed in the next leg of the Series in Rossendale last weekend, in spite of the hand injury he got while practicing. Nicholls successfully reached the men's final where he was tied at 1st place with 18 year-old Collum Mytton.

The organizers, however, decided that a tie was unsuitable, therefore a super final was staged for both riders. On their first try, they both landed with a 900 so they had to do another trick. Nicholls took it a step further with a 1080 and got 90 degrees off, while Collum landed his switch underflip and so just pipped Jamie to take the win.

Nicholls, just like many up-and-coming athletes, is being supported by Nike 6.0. It aims to nurture the talents of the likes of Nicholls in a variety of disciplines such as surfing, skateboarding, mountain biking, BMXing and snowboarding.

Check out Nike 6.0’s new range of footwear at www.nke6.com.

 

---

Aspen Skiing Co. takes a bold move and is making an advertising campaign to raise environmental awareness among its customers. Scott Condon of the Aspen Times reported yesterday on the said move by Skico.

In the coming months, Skico will run three full-page ads in Ski and Outside ... Read Full Story magazines. The different ads will show things like, snow’s death certificate, snow being an endangered species and a future definition of snow once it is gone.

While this move is contrary to the findings of a research group five years ago, Skico says that times have changed. The research firm Z Group said in 2001 that while the company should not, "reduce its commitment to environmental responsibility," its value of does not lie in its marketing contribution. Skico meanwhile said that much has changed in five years. More visitors now take in consideration environmental sustainability when choosing a travel destination.

Read more of Condon’s news at www.aspentimes.com. Use the account details at www.bugmenot.com to access the news without registering at Aspen Times.

 

---

PARK CITY, Utah (Sept. 14) - Online registration for the 2007 Chevrolet U.S. Snowboard Grand Prix series opens for business on Tuesday, October 17, 2006.

Mark your calendar, then log on to www.ussnow ... Read Full Story boarding.com to secure your spot in America's biggest competition series.

The tour kicks off at Breckenridge, Colo., Dec. 14-16, before heading East to Mountain Creek, N.J., Feb. 2-4, and concluding at the series' newest venue of Tamarack, Id., Feb. 24-25. NBC and OLN (soon to be called Versus) will broadcast coverage of the entire series.

Fields sizes will be made up of about 90 men and 40 women in each of the halfpipe contests at all three venues. Only Tamarack will host a SBX event, expected to field about 100 men and 30 women. So register early.

With the largest overall purse for an American snowboarding series - the 2007 Grand Prix tour boast prizes totaling more than $300,000 - along with the best broadcast package for the sport on NBC, America's Olympic network. Rebroadcasts and special presentations of events will be broadcast by OLN (Versus). Plus, in keeping with the tour's tradition, overall winners of the Grand Prix series will be awarded a new Chevrolet truck.

This article was originally posted at the US Snowboard Team's website www.ussnowboarding.com.

---

<

1 2 3 >