VIS aerial skier Laura Peel won the final World Cup event of the season with a stunning performance on the 2026 Olympic course in Livigno, Italy, her fifth victory of the season and the 14th of her impressive career. In doing so, Peel claimed her third FIS World Cup Crystal Globe as the number one ranked athlete at the end of World Cup circuit.

Australian female aerial skiers have amassed a total of 14 Crystal Globes over the past 33 years. Peel now has the second-highest total among Australians with three, trailing only the legendary Jacqui Cooper, who has five. Other winners include Kirstie Marshall, Alisa Camplin, Lydia Lassila, and Danielle Scott.

Heading into to the final event, Peel had a near unbeatable lead in the standings and only needed to finish 12th or better to secure the title, leading Chinese skier Mengtao Xu by 78 points. Peel made sure of that by qualifying for the 12-woman final in second place. Joining Peel in finals were VIS teammates Airleigh Frigo in fifth, Abbey Willcox seventh and Danielle Scott 10th. Just missing finals action by one place was Elise Coleiro in 13th and in the men’s event Reilly Flanagan was 17th.

Peel performed a lay-full-full double twisting triple back somersault in the first round of finals, to advance to the top six super-final in second place on 91.83 points. Just missing out on the medal round were Abbey Willcox in seventh, Airleigh Frigo ninth and Danielle Scott 11th.

In the super-final Peel upped her degree of difficulty scoring what was an unbeatable 112.90 points for her spectacular full-full-full triple twisting triple back somersault in one of her best jumps of the season. Second place went to Xu of China on 105.17 and her teammate Meiting Chen was third on 91.44.

“I am so stoked, honestly I couldn’t be happier, it’s globe number three, I don’t think it gets any easier,” said the 35-year-old Peel from Canberra.

“That’s day four on this site now. I’ve got to say I really like it. It’s been working well for me, I’ve been jumping well. That’s a relief and I’m so excited to come back here for the Olympics.”

Peel finished the season number one on 542 points, 98 clear of Xu on 444 and Scott was third on 368, it is the sixth time in her career Scott has placed in the top three on final season rankings. Willcox and Frigo both had the highest rankings of their careers in fifth and 10th places respectively.

The season will conclude at the FIS World Championships in St Moritz, Switzerland. First up will be the aerial teams event on March 27, to be followed by individual qualifications on March 29 and finals March 30.

Peel, Scott, Willcox and Frigo will represent Australia in the women’s event and Flanagan will be the lone Aussie in the men’s competition.

Peel is aiming for her third World Championship gold in Switzerland. She commented, “pretty much keep the same plan, what I have been doing I just want to repeat the same at the World Champs, it’s a long season, everyone is getting a bit tired, but we are super exited to head to St Moritz and it’s the peak of our season.”

VIS aerial skiers Laura Peel and Danielle Scott made it a double World Cup podium celebration in Almaty, Kazakhstan, where Peel claimed gold and Scott bronze.
 
The victory completed a terrific turnaround for Peel, after qualifying in last place in the 12-woman final, but then landed both triple back somersaults in the first final and then the medal round to record the 13th World Cup victory of her career.
 
Four VIS women qualified for finals with Scott in first, Airleigh Frigo seventh, Abbey Willcox eighth and Peel in 12th. First year World Cup athlete, Elise Coleiro was 13th to just miss the final and matching her career best finish.
 
In the first round of finals, Peel performed a lay-full-full triple somersault scoring 93.85 placing her third, Scott scored 91.66 for her full-full double somersault putting her in fourth and Willcox made it three Aussies in the super-final in sixth place, scoring 84.96 for her full-full jump. Missing out on the super-final was Frigo in 12th on 60.79 for her full-full.
 
In the medal round, Peel increased her difficult adding an extra twist jumping full-full-full to score a massive 115.91 points in first place and her fourth victory of the season. Mengtao Xu of China was second on 101.74, Scott was third and after increasing her difficulty performing a double full-full (triple twisting double somersault) which scored 87.06. Willcox finished sixth jumping a different triple twist variation but missing the landing to score 65.56.
 
“I feel great, really relieved. I think I got a little lucky, I snuck into the final, so I’m just happy to be jumping,” said Peel, the 35-year-old double World Champion from Canberra.
 
In the men’s competition Reilly Flanagan performed a lay full single twisting double somersault to finish 31st.
 
With one event remaining, Peel is on 442 points on top of the World Cup standings, increasing her lead to 78 points ahead of Xu, Scott is third 98 points behind Peel. Also in the top-10 for Australia are Willcox sixth and Frigo ninth.
 
The final World Cup of the season will take place at the 2026 Olympic venue in Livigno, Italy, on March 13.
 
Peel is in prime position to secure her third career World Cup crystal globe if she can finish 12th or better in Italy.
 
Peel said: “I’m in a good spot, but I don’t want to get too ahead of myself. One jump at a time, but I’m really happy.”

VIS aerial skier Danielle Scott has finished third at the World Cup event in Beidahu, China, her third podium of the season and 23rd of her career.
 
The back-to-back defending World Cup Champion qualified for finals in fourth place after scoring 831.6 points for her full-full double twisting double back somersault. Joining Scott in finals jumping the same jump were Flying Kangaroos teammates Abbey Willcox in sixth on 79.38, Laura Peel seventh with 78.75 and Airleigh Frigo in 11th on 74.97.
 
In the first round of finals, Scott performed the same jump again, this time improving to the second highest score of the round on 90.40 to secure a place in the top-six super-final medal round. Joining Scott in the super-final was Willcox on 83.79, but missing out was Frigo in seventh on 80.95 for her full-full, and Peel in eighth who had trouble with landing the difficult lay-full-full triple back somersault with two twists, scoring 79.35.
 
In the super-final medal round, Scott increased her difficulty adding an extra twist from her previous jumps, performing a double full-full triple twisting double back somersault, scoring 89.18 from the judges to finish in third.
 
Willcox finished in fifth place scoring 78.88 points for her lay-full single twisting double back somersault.
 
Mengtao Xu of China was the winner, the 2022 Olympic champion scored 114.19, with her teammate Meiting Chen in second on 109.04, both Chinese jumpers performed a very difficult full-full-full, triple back somersault with three twists.
 
“It was a tricky day with the wind changing a lot, so I am happy to put my jumps down the way I did, and use that experience out there” said the 34-year-old Scott from NSW, who trains in Brisbane at the Geoff Henke Olympic Winter Training Centre water jump facility.
 
“This year I am not jumping triples, so it’s all about maximising those points with my doubles.”
 
Narrowly missing the 12-woman final in a career best finish was rookie Elise Coleiro in 13th and in the men’s event Reilly Flanagan was 30th.
 
After five events Peel is ranked first on the World standings on 342 points, with Scott and Xu of China tied for second on 284. Also in the top-10 are Australians Willcox in seventh and Frigo in eighth.
 
Australia seventh in mixed team event
In the mixed team event Australia was represented by Danielle Scott, Laura Peel and Reilly Flanagan, finishing in seventh place with a total score of 238.91.
 
Scott opened for Australia scoring 80.01 for her double full-full, Peel jumped full-full-full receiving 77.70, and Flanagan scored 81.20 for his lay-full.
 
The next World Cup event will take place in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on March 2, with the World Cup final on the future 2026 Olympic venue in Livigno, Italy, on March 13.

VIS aerial skiers have swept the first four places at the iconic World Cup event in Deer Valley, USA, the first time Australia has filled the FIS World Cup podium in any winter sport.
 
Leading the way was two-time World Champion Laua Peel who claimed her third straight victory and 12th win of her impressive career, ahead of two-time defending World Cup champion Danielle Scott in second, Abbey Willcox was third and Airleigh Frigo fourth.
 
Competing on the historic 2002 Olympic Course, athletes encountered challenging weather throughout the week. Warm conditions led to the cancellation of two training days, and heavy snowfall on the event day forced the qualification round to be rescheduled to the night final session.
 
In difficult conditions, Peel reduced her degree of difficulty to double somersaults, scoring 87.88 points for her full-full double twisting double somersault jump and advancing to the top-six super final in first place. Willcox, Scott, and Frigo also performed the same full-full jump, securing second, third, and fourth places with scores of 82.53, 79.38, and 78.12, respectively.
 
In the super-final, athletes were able to perform the same jump from the qualification round. All Australian athletes chose to compete with the full-full jump. Peel narrowly clinched the win with a score of 87.57, followed closely by Scott, on 86.31. Willcox earned the bronze medal on 81.58, and Frigo was fourth place on 69.30.

“I am really happy to have the yellow leads bib, we are halfway through the season now, and three back-to-back-wins is super exciting, and tonight was so special having an Aussie sweep of the podium and Airleigh as well in fourth place” said Peel, the 35-year-old from Canberra.
 
“It’s incredible, I am so happy, Deer Valley really is a special place for me, it’s my second home, and to take out the sweep with Laura an Abbey and Airleigh in fourth, we are making history, it’s really cool for Australia” said Scott, the 34-year-old Scott from NSW.

“Every World Cup podium I have had has been in Deer Valley, so it’s cool to continue that streak, and to share it with two other Aussies and make history with a clean sweep” said Willcox, the 28-year-old Willcox from Brisbane.
 
Missing out on finals were rookie VIS Flying Kangaroos Sidney Stephens in 14th place, Elise Coleiro 15th, and Reilly Flanagan 24th.
 
After four events, Peel has extended her position at the top of the World Cup standings with an impressive 310 points. Scott has moved into second place with 224 points, while Willcox and Frigo are in eighth and ninth places with 138 and 133 points, respectively.
 
The next World Cup aerial skiing event is in China on February 23 & 24 at Beidahu ski resort.

Laura Peel has capped an extraordinary weekend by securing back-to-back gold medals at the World Cup event in Lac-Beauport, Canada. The VIS aerial skier again successfully jumped her spectacular triple back somersaults to lead a double Aussie podium celebration on the second day of competition, when VIS teammate Airleigh Frigo achieved her first career podium finish in third place.
 
In difficult conditions, four Australian women qualified for top 12 finals, Danielle Scott in second, Peel fourth, Abbey Willcox tenth and Frigo 12th, the most of any nation in the women’s event.
 
In the first round of finals, Peel advanced to the super-final medal round in first place after scoring 94.65 points for her lay-full-full triple somersault jump. Joining Peel in her first super-final was 25-year-old Frigo from Brisbane in fifth after scoring 83.47 with a full-full double somersault. Unlucky to miss the super-final were both Abbey WIllcox in seventh on 80.95 and Danielle Scott, eighth on 80.50.
 
In the super-final, Peel increased her degree of difficult adding an extra twist in her triple, scoring 102.17 for her full-full-full jump to record her 11th career World Cup victory. American Karenna Elliott was a distant second on 87.42, and Frigo celebrated her first podium in third, scoring 76.85 for her lay-full double back somersault and smashing her previous best World Cup finish of 12th.
 
“I feel relieved. It’s been all kinds of weather and it’s hard to stay calm up there and trust yourself” said Peel, the 35-year-old double World Champion from Canberra.
 
“I had my plan from the beginning. I didn’t want to change it. I wanted to be able to execute those jumps in all conditions. The difficulty will ramp up going into the (Milan-Cortina 2026) Games, and I want to be ready.
 
“It’s been some really early mornings and long days. I’ll relax for a couple of days, get some good sleep, and get back to work.”
 
Missing out on finals were other VIS Flying Kangaroos Elise Coleiro in 21st place, Sidney Stephens 29th and Reilly Flanagan 31st.
 
After three events, Peel has surged into first place on the World Cup standings on 210 points. Mengtao Xu of China follows in second on 184 and Elliott of the USA is third with 160 Australia has two more athletes in the top-10, Scott in fifth place on 144 points and Frigo in tenth with 83 points.
 
The next aerial skiing World Cup event is on February 7 in Deer Valley, USA, on the iconic “White Owl” 2002 Olympic Winter Games jump site, where Alisa Camplin made history by winning Australia’s first-ever skiing gold medal.

VIS double World Champion Laura Peel claimed her first victory of the season and tenth of her career in the first of two World Cup events in Lac Beauport, Canada.
 
Peel carried on her outstanding form from the team event in Lake Placid the previous  weekend to land both her spectacular triple back somersaults in the final rounds in freezing -20 temperatures.
 
In the first round of finals Peel performed a lay-full-full, double twisting triple back somersault to advance to the six-woman super-final with a score of 104.32 points in first place.
 
For the final jump of the event, Peel increased her degree of difficulty adding an extra twist, with her full-full-full, triple twisting triple back somersault, scoring a huge 117.19, finishing ahead of Chinese skiers Meiting Chen on 102.31 in second and Mengtao Xu in third with 92.72.
 
“Today was a good day, I am really happy with my jumping, I have been working to build consistency, and today it was three-from-three, and I hope it will be the same tomorrow” said the 35-year-old from Canberra.
 
“I have been at this a long time, this is maybe my twelfth of thirteenth year on tour, so I am used to being cold, but when you have a job to do you just put it to the back of your mind. I have a few cues that I tell myself before every jump, I am just trying to stay calm and focus on the process.”
 
Also in action were VIS teammates, Danielle Scott made first round of finals in eighth place and in the qualifications Sidney Stephens was 15th, Airleigh Frigo 19th, Abbey Willcox 21st, Elsie Coleiro 25th and Reilly Flanagan 36th.

Australia has won its first medal in the aerial skiing mixed team event since 2017, after Laura Peel led Australia to a bronze medal performance in Lake Placid, USA.
 
The Australian team featuring VIS skiers two-time World Champion Laura Peel, World Cup medallist Abbey Willcox and World Cup debutant Reilly Flanagan, qualified for the final in fourth place with 263.33 points, highlighted by Peel’s triple twisting triple back somersault scoring 114.62 points which was comparable with the leading men in the event.
 
In the final, Peel was even better, scoring 118.48 points performing the same jump. Willcox and Flanagan both landed every competition jump on the night, which were double somersaults with two twists and one twist respectively.
 
The Australian team landed all six jumps in competition, to finish on the podium in third place and a combined score of 277.63 points. All of the other teams in the competition featured two men and one female competitor, while Team Australia was two females and one male and all scores counted.
 
Finishing in first place was China on 289.17 points, followed by Canada in second with 289.17.
 
“It was a good day, I am super happy, it was the first time I have competed in a team event in a long time, we are happy to have Reilly here now, we have someone in the men’s event so we can compete, and to finish on the podium is amazing” said the 35-year-old Peel from Canberra.
 
“It was great conditions out there, everybody jumped so amazing, it was great to be a part of it” said the 28-year-old Willcox from Brisbane.
 
“It feels amazing to be here, I feel like we are so privileged to have a team after so long, and I am just enjoying the moment” said the 20-year-old Flanagan from Brisbane.
 
The aerial skiing team now heads to Lac-Beauport, Canada, for a double World Cup next weekend on January 25 and 26.

VIS aerial skier Danielle Scott has made a great start to the World Cup season with a silver medal performance at the first event of the year in Lake Placid, USA, claiming the 22nd World Cup medal of her career.
 
The back-to-back defending World Cup Champion performed well in all three stages of the competition, placing second in the opening qualifications, and then secured her spot in the medal round by leading the first round of finals with an impressive full-full double twisting double back somersault that scored 92.29 points.
 
In the super-final medal round, Scott increased her degree of difficult to perform a triple twisting double back somersault, scoring 95.17 points and agonisingly close to victory by the small margin of 0.35 points.

2022 Olympic Champion Mengtao Xu of China won the gold medal scoring 95.52. Rounding out the podium in third with a score of 90.94 was Canadian Marion Thenault.
 
“Pretty stoked, it was awesome to get back in the start gate again, this year has been a pretty big ride on a rollercoaster, so grateful to just be here,” said the 34-year-old Scott from NSW, who trains in Brisbane at the Geoff Henke Olympic Winter Training Centre water jump facility.
 
“Today had everything weather wise, head winds to tail winds to falling snow, to everything changing on us in such small windows, very grateful and happy for my coaches for getting all the attention to detail right and trusting everything out there.
 
“Experience definitely played a big role, it wasn’t my first time dealing with tricky weather, sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you don’t with wind gusts, so you have to take it as it comes, and I am grateful for that experience.
 
VIS teammate Abbey Willcox also qualified for the final in fifth place and went on to finish in eighth in the first round of finals.
 
Missing out on the final was Airliegh Frigo in 20th and double World Champion Laura Peel in 21st
 
Also competing for Australia in their World Cup debuts were VIS development skiers Sidney Stephens in 28th, Elise Coleiro 29th and Reilly Flanagan 29th.

VIS double aerial skiing World Champion Laura Peel has commenced the Northern Hemisphere winter with a double gold medal performance in the European Cup events in Ruka, Finland, with teammates Abbey Willcox also claiming medals on both days and Danielle Scott finishing third in her one start at the event.
 
The VIS program has been training in Finland for the past month, with Continental Cup team skiers Miriana Perkins and Elise Coleiro performing their first ever double back somersaults on snow.
 
Over the weekend, two European Cup events took place in Ruka, the first aerial skiing competitions of the norther winter.
 
On day one, Peel led an Australian clean sweep of the podium with 94.82 points for her triple twisting double back somersault, with Abbey Willcox in second after scoring 78.12 for her full-full jump, with Danielle Scott in third on 76.49 for her triple twisting double back somersault. VIS aerial skier Miriana Perkins also qualified for the final, finishing in sixth place.
 
On day two, Peel made it back-to-back victories, performing the same triple twisting double back somersault in the final scoring 90.24 points, to finish ahead of Canada Marion Thenault on 87.42, and Willcox in third with 77.12 points. Scott chose not to compete in the second event.
 
The first World Cup of the season will take place in Lake Placid, USA, on January 18-19,
 
Day One

Women
1st Laura Peel
2nd Abbey Willcox
3rd Danielle Scott
6th Miriana Perkins
10th Airleigh Frigo
11th Sidney Stephens
12th Elise Coleiro

Men
26th Reilly Flanagan
 
Day Two

Women
1st Laura Peel
3rd Abbey Willcox
7th Elise Coleiro
10th Airleigh Frigo
12th Miriana Perkins
13th Sidney Stephens
 
Men
25th Reilly Flanagan

Danielle Scott made it a double podium weekend for the VIS aerial skier on day two in Lac Beauport, with a bronze medal performance to add to silver medal from the previous day. Abbey Willcox also continued her strong recent form with her third straight super-final performance with another fifth place finish.

In the qualification round, Scott advanced in fifth place and Willcox in ninth to the 12-woman final. In the first round of finals both athletes performed full-full double twisting double backflips to make it through to the top six super-final in first and second place with 84.73 and 80.32 points respectively.

In the super-final medal round, Scott performed the more difficult double full-full triple twisting double back somersault jump, scoring 81.42 points to take the bronze medal, her 20th career podium.

“It was frustrating, I really wanted to put down a better jump today, but the speed was all over the place," said the 33-year-old Scott.

“It’s been really tricky with these conditions, so frustrated with that unfortunately, but very grateful to still be on the podium.”

Willcox jumped a lay-full single twisting double back somersault to score 66.41 points in the super-final, giving her a final ranking of fifth, extending her career best super-final streak to three appearances.

In first place was American Winter Vinecki who scored 97.88 points on her triple back somersault, with Meiting Chen of China in second with 88.12 points.

With one World Cup event remaining in the season, Vinecki has now moved back into first place on the rankings on 352 points, with Scott trailing by 12 points.

Brisbane based Willcox moved up one place to be ranked a career best seventh.

The final event will take place on March 10 in Almaty, Kazakhstan, where Scott can secure back-to-back Crystal Globes with a good performance in the super-final, and if she finishes ahead of Vinecki.

VIS aerial skiers Danielle Scott and Abbey Willcox have made it a double podium celebration under lights at the prestigious World Cup event in Deer Valley, USA.

Competing on the Olympic course where Alisa Camplin famously won gold in 2002 and in front of the biggest crowd of the season, Scott was extremely unlucky not to claim victory, finishing with the same score in first place with Winter Vinecki of the USA on 77.90 points, but losing a tiebreak from their form scores 10.3 points to 10.2, giving Scott silver and the 18th podium performance of the three time Olympians career.

Rounding out the podium with her second career podium, which was also in Deer Valley four years ago, was Abbey Willcox who scored 76.85 points.

“Pretty happy, it has been an absolutely crazy day with extreme weather, a bit of rain and super soft snow falling, it’s really hard conditions so to walk away with a podium very happy” said the 33-year-old Scott from NSW, who trains in Brisbane at the Geoff Henke Olympic Winter Training Centre water jump facility.

“It’s so awesome (to have teammate Willcox on the podium), she has worked so hard and it’s well deserved.”

“It’s been four years in the making, so happy to back on the podium and such a beautiful night to be jumping in front of everyone in Deer Valley,” said the 27-year-old Willcox, from Brisbane via the NSW Central Coast.

Willcox was also thrilled to match her previous best World Cup finish.

“It’s pretty much an exact repeat of four years ago, it’s co incredible to share the podium with Dani as well, two Aussies on the podium is amazing.” With three events remaining Scott is ranked second on the World Cup standings on 200 points, trailing Vinecki by 32 points, with Canadian Marion Thenault in third on 122 points.

Triple Olympian and Dual world champion Laura Peel, did not compete in Deer Valley, electing to take a break for the remainder of the competition season to freshen up in advance of 2026 Olympic qualifying commencing next season.
Next on the schedule for the aerial skiers is a double World Cup next weekend in Lac-Beauport, Canada.

The Australian Flying Kangaroos Aerial Ski Team have been training in Snowbasin, Utah, USA this month, and over the weekend three time VIS Olympian Danielle Scott has showed she can't wait for the World Cup tour to resume with a double podium performance in FIS events at the Utah Olympic Park (UOP). 

Two FIS events took place at the UOP, with competitors from Australia, Germany, Kazakhstan, Switzerland, Ukraine and the USA all competing, with Danielle Scott in action on both days and Abbey Willcox in the first event.

On day one Scott finished in third place in the final, performing a full-full and receiving a score of 76.54 from the judges.

VIS teammate Abbey Willcox finished in tenth place after missing her landing, scoring 45.24 for her lay-full in the final.

On day two Scott upped her degree of difficulty performing a double-full full jump, scoring 97.99 to claim the gold medal, with a winning margin of 10.74 points ahead of second place.

After the event Danielle Scott reflected on a great weekend.

"It was a fun but interesting weekend of competition, really warm weather with rain and sticky jumps so a lot of it came down to experience.

"I only had a couple of days to get back on snow after a month off at home, so it felt good to get back in the swing of things quickly and land on the podium both days.

"Thanks to the team around me and to coaches Dima and Sasha for putting me in the right place for the tricky conditions.

"Now for some more training in preparation for the Deer Valley World Cup which is always one of the best and most exciting stops on tour!"

The Deer Valley World Cup will take place under lights on February 2.

Australia’s female wintersport athletes have made it a four medal weekend to open the World Cup season, with aerial skier Danielle Scott claiming a silver medal in Ruka, Finland, and snowboard cross rider Belle Brockhoff finishing with a bronze in Les Deux Alpes, France, overnight.

Earlier in the weekend mogul skier Jakara Anthony took gold in Ruka and Tess Coady silver in the snowboard big air in Beijing, China.

For aerial skier Scott, the podium performance was the 17th of her World Cup career, and a strong start to defending her World Cup title of last season.

Scott qualified for the super-final in first place, and in the medal round scored 88.47 points for her double-full full jump.

Taking the win was Canadian Marion Thenault who scored 99.05 points for her full-double full jump, with Zhanbota Aldabergenova of Kazakhstan in third with 77.43 after jumping a lay-full.

Two-time World Champion Laura Peel again jumped her spectacular triple back somersault in finals, just missing the podium in fourth place by half a point, scoring 76.93 for her super difficult lay-full-full jump.

“Very happy, would have been nice to make it three wins in a row but that ok” said the 33-year-old Scott from NSW, who trains in Brisbane at the Geoff Henke Olympic Winter Training Centre water jump facility.

“I have had a pretty tough week, my legs have been cramping like no other, so it’s been really weird, but to end up on the podium I am super happy.”

“This season is going to be pretty chill for me, just keeping the body healthy doing some nice jumps, just maximising points.”

Also in action for Australia was Abbey Willcox who made the final in 12th place in her first World Cup since January 2022, and Airleigh Frigo in 17th.

The aerial skiing World Cup circuit now heads to Changchun, China, for a competition next weekend on December 16.

The first event for the FIS Freestyle World Cup season takes place this weekend in Ruka, Finland, with the Australian Aerial and Mogul skiing teams based at the Finish resort for a number of weeks, training on the World Cup courses in the lead in to the first event.

First up will be the Mogul World Cup on Saturday December 2, and the following day on Sunday December 3 it will be aerial skiers turn to compete, with Danielle Scott looking to defend her 2023 World Cup title alongside two-time World Champion and 2023 World Cup runner up Laura Peel.

Airleigh Frigo is keen to continue building momentum after her first full World Cup season and Abbey Willcox is returning to competition after a 12 month break.

"Training in Ruka has been good although slower than normal due to some weird muscles spasms in my quads," said Scott.

"Brisbane has been vital in my winter preparations for years now and I’m super grateful to be based on home soil with our own training times. I was able to spend a lot more time at home in between training which is huge for mental recovery."

"After a pretty big year last year, I’m just looking forward to some nice clean jumps and keeping my body feeling healthy."

"Right now with the slow start I’m just focusing on a day by day mentality."

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A glorious Brisbane day greeted competitors for the final of the FIS Freestyle Ski Summer Grand Prix Series, with competitors from Australia, Switzerland and Ukraine taking part.

The Geoff Henke Olympic Winter Training Centre at Sleeman Sports Complex hosted the final round of the Series which launched earlier this year with the opening two rounds taking place in USA and Switzerland.

Australian Airleigh Frigo took out today’s Freestyle Ski Summer Grand Prix, with a score of 85.36. The 24 year old finished ahead of fellow Aussie team mate Abbey Willcox (79.69) and Ukraine’s Diana Yablonska (68.44).

With today’s competition the first time in almost 20 years the Aussies have had the chance to compete on home soil, Frigo couldn’t be happier.

“It felt amazing, it was the first win for me in an Aerials competition and it was great to do it on home soil,” said Frigo.
“I train here all year round so I really know the facility and I think that was a huge advantage.

“It’s a great place to train, the weather is always great… hopefully there are more [events] to come in the future.
“With this facility we are able to train more and more often and get our jumps really good so when the winter comes it’ll all carry through.

“I’ll now finish off the water ramping season and then head overseas to start competing in World Cups.  We’ll be overseas until about March,” she said.

Missing from today’s line up was triple Olympian Laura Peel, who sadly sustained a calf injury during yesterday’s training. Despite not lining up, Peel took second overall in the Series.

In the men’s it came down to Switzerland's Pirmin Werner and Noe Roth.  Roth was the last athlete on course and favored to win the day and the Series crown. But on his last run he lost a ski mid air and while the rules permitted a rerun, it wasn’t enough to secure the win over his teammate Werner.

Werner said: “It feels amazing, it’s always nice when you win. It’s my second time here in Australia. We were here last year for a training camp and then our winter season was pretty successful so we decided to come again.”

Hundreds of fans turned out to watch the showcase event, with Werner admitting it added to the festivities.
“It’s always nice when you have a crowd.  I would love to come next year to compete. It’s awesome here, we always have a good time and the weather is awesome, and we can do a lot of good and difficult jumps,” he said.

Today’s event capped off the inaugural FIS Freestyle Ski Summer Grand Prix Series, with competitors set to return to training and finalise preparations ahead of the World Cup season in the northern hemisphere. 

For full results from today’s competition - click here.

MEDALISTS I Brisbane Freestyle Ski Summer Grand Prix Series

Women
1.    Airleigh Frigo (AUS) 85.36
2.    Abbey Willcox (AUS) 79.69
3.    Diana Yablonska (UKR) 68.44

Men
1.    Pirmin Werner (SUI) 146.37
2.    Dmytro Kotovskyi (UKR) 122.62
3.    Oleksandr Okipniuk (UKR) 120.00

Article courtesy BTB/Lauren Ryan
Images - Rogue Gun Photography

Laura Peel with Geoff Henke and her coach Mich Roth

Brisbane is all set to host the final leg of the inaugural FIS Freestyle Ski Summer Grand Prix Series tomorrow Saturday 9 September, at the Geoff Henke Olympic Winter Training Centre at Sleeman Sports Complex.

Athletes got their first taste of the venue at a training session today, with teams from Australia, Ukraine and Switzerland set to go head to head. 

Among the lineup is Australia’s triple Olympian and World Champion Laura Peel, who currently leads the Series. 
World Cup medalist and Olympic hopefully Abbey Willcox will be one of the Aussies featured in the line up tomorrow. She’s hoping to take advantage of her home ground. 

“Training went really well, this facility is absolutely incredible, it’s such a privilege to train here. I’m just working on a few little basics at the moment and looking forward to putting it down in competition tomorrow. 

“I don’t think Australia has held an aerials competition here in close to 20 years, so to be here in the Sunshine State competing in aerials skiing is a really cool experience.”

Switzerland's Noé Roth, Current World Champion, said the Brisbane facility is looking great and he’s excited to be down under to cap off the new Series. 

“I love it here, it’s a super beautiful place to be, it’s always a good time [in Brisbane]. I’m excited to jump tomorrow. 
“It’s going to be a really good show [tomorrow]... we’ve also got the Ukraine team here as well as the Australians. It’s going to be really good,” he said. 

Snow Australia CEO Michael Kennedy, said he hopes Brisbane locals will come along to enjoy this unique event. 
“We are thrilled to have Brisbane as the final destination of this inaugural FIS Freestyle Ski Summer Grand Prix Series.
“We have made this event free to the public to encourage as many locals to come along and see world class freestyle skiers in action.”

The FIS Summer Grand Prix will be held on Saturday 9 September at Sleeman Sports Complex, Old Cleveland Rd &, Tilley Rd, Chandler, Brisbane.

Gates open from 12:30pm with finals starting 1:00pm.  While tickets are free, spectators must register their attendance here.

Top Image - Abbey Willcox in action during official training © Rogue Gun Photography & Media

Swiss team Noe Roth (left) with his father and coach Mich Roth, and teammate Primin Werner

Laura Peel has produced one of the highest scoring jumps of all time to win gold at the World Cup aerial skiing event in Deer Valley, USA.
 
Peel scored an amazing 118.05 points with her full-full-full, triple twisting triple back somersault, to record the seventh World Cup victory of her career and winning by almost 35 points. Peel’s score was so impressive, it would have put her on the podium in the men’s event.
 
Second place went to China’s Kong Fanyu who scored 84.58 points, with Hanna Huskova rounding out the podium in third with 82.65 points.
 
Danielle Scott almost made it a double podium for Australia, finishing in fourth place after attempting her first ever full-full-full in competition, which scored 80.27 points after having trouble with her landing. Scott had earlier won the qualification round and then qualified for the super final in first place with her full-tuck-full, double twisting triple somersault scoring 103.74 points.
 
“Obviously a great day today, I feel like I have been working for a long time to put down a jump like this” said Peel, the 32-year-old from Canberra.
 
“To do it right ahead of the Olympic Games is amazing.”
 
“I’ve been putting the work on the triple for a few seasons now, and I’m always very grateful for the experience I have when things get tough.”
 
“So many people have helped me get to this point in my career and continue to help me chase my dreams everyday, but when I started working with my coach Mich Roth three years ago things started to click, we make a great team.”
 
Just missing out on the 12-woman final was Gabi Ash in 13th, with Abbey Willcox in 22nd. In the men’s event Wesley Naylor finished in 35th place.
 
After six events this season, Peel has now moved into third place on the World Cup standings with Scott one spot behind in fourth.
 
The aerial skiing athletes will now head to Le Relais, Canada, for a training camp to prepare for the Beijing Olympic Winter Games.

Danielle Scott has made a strong start to 2022, narrowly missed the podium in fourth place at the World Cup event in Le Relais, Canada, moving her up to third place on the World Cup standings.
 
Scott had a number of impressive jumps on the day, qualifying for finals in second place with her double full-full scoring  90.94 points.
 
In the first round of finals, Scott increased her degree of difficulty jumping triple back somersaults, performing a lay-tuck-full which scored 97.57 points to advance to the super final in second place.
 
Scott added an extra twist to her triple back somersault jump in the super final, performing a full-tuck-full, but unfortunately was marked down on her landing to score 79.89 points, putting her in fourth position.
 
Taking the win was Chinese jumper Mengtao Xu who scored 103.92 points, with Canadian Marion Thenault in second with 93.41 and anther Chinese athlete Fanyu Kong rounding out the podium in third place with a score of 92.70.
 
“So close to the podium today”, said the 31-year-old double World Championship medallist.
 
“Next stop Deer Valley and triple (somersault) hungry.”
 
Also in action for Australia was Abbey Willcox in 15th, Laura Peel 16th and Gabi Ash 17th. In the men’s event Wesley Naylor placed a personal best 24th.
 
The World Cup tour will now head to Deer Valley, Utah, USA, for a competition on January 12, this will be the final event before the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games.

IMAGE: Laura Peel in action in Le Relais

Australia has recorded an amazing double podium performance, with Danielle Scott and Laura Peel taking home gold and silver at the aerial skiing World Cup event in Ruka, Finland.
 
The last time Australia recorded a double podium was four years ago in Lake Placid, USA, when Lydia Lassila and Laura Peel won medals in back-to-back World Cup events.
 
In a one jump competition, Scott scored a near perfect 102.93 points for her double full-full jump, a triple twisting double back somersault, to record the fifth World Cup victory of her career.
 
2021 World and World Cup Champion Peel performed a full-tuck-full, double twisting triple back somersault, scoring 99.37 points to finish in second place.
 
Rounding out the podium in third place was Mengtao Xu of China with a score of 98.28 points.
 
“Walking away with the gold today feels pretty amazing” said Scott, the 31-year-old double World Championship medallist.
 
“It’s been a bit of a slow, but good build to the season, I started doing triple back somersaults last week, but decided to compete double somersaults today.
 
“I have cracked the 100 point mark before on a triple twisting double, so I thought that would be my goal for today and ended up walking away with the win, which I am so incredible happy with.
 
“To have a teammate on the podium is pretty special, we have a pretty awesome team dynamic right now, and it’s even sweeter I guess.
 
“I spent lots of hours training at the Geoff Henke Olympic Winter Training Centre water jump at Brisbane’s Sleeman Sports Centre, which I am super grateful for, so it’s nice when hard work pays off. “
 
Also in action for Australia was Abbey Willcox, who recorded her best result of the season, finishing in 11th, with Airleigh Frigo in a personal best 19th place and Gabi Ash in 34th.
 
After four events, Danielle Scott is sitting in fourth place on the World Cup standings, with Laura Peel in fifth.
 
The aerial skiing World Cup tour will resume in the new year, with the next event taking place in Le Relais, Canada, on January 5.

Danielle Scott has continued her strong start to the 2021-2022 World Cup season, finishing in equal fifth place overnight in Ruka, Finland.
 
Improving on her eighth place finish in the first day of competition yesterday, Scott performed her double full-full, triple twisting double back somersault, scoring 89.18 points in the one jump competition.
 
The 31-year-old relocated to Queensland in order to train at the brand new Geoff Henke Olympic Winter Training Centre water jump facility at Brisbane’s Sleeman Sports Centre and will look to increase her degree of difficulty in her jumps as the season progresses.
 
“It’s been a pretty good start to the season, just slowly building” said the double World Championship medallist.
 
“It’s crazy, we are finally in the fourth year of the Olympic quad, it feels like a long time coming, just with COVID and everything being so different, but I feel ready, and we have to keep building, it’s only December.”
 
2021 World Cup and World Champion Laura Peel again jumped the highest degree of difficulty in the women’s field, with her full-full-full triples twisting triple back somersault scoring 76.84 points after having trouble with her landing, giving her a final ranking of 13th.
 
“I am getting up there with degree of difficulty, so I am putting in the work for what’s ahead in the season” said the two-time winter Olympian from Canberra.
 
China took the top two places on the podium, with Mengtao Xu in first place with a score of 99.49 points, with her teammate Fanyu Kong in second with a score of 95.52. Rounding out the podium was Hanna Huskova of Belarus in third place with a score of 94.60.
 
Also competing for Australia in the women’s event were Gabi Ash in 26th place, Abbey Willcox in 31st and Airleigh Frigo in 37th. In the men’s event, Wesley Naylor finished in 43rd place.
 
Australia also competed in the mixed aerials team event in Ruka, with the team of Danielle Scott, Laura Peel and Wesley Naylor finishing in seventh place out of ten nations. The mixed aerials team competition will make its debut at the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games.
 
The aerial skiing athletes will remain in Ruka for one more week, with more World Cup events scheduled to take place in the Finish resort next weekend.

The aerial skiing World Cup season has commenced with a double event overnight in Ruka, Finland, with Laura Peel narrowly missing out on the podium in fourth place.
 
The 2021 World and World Cup Champion from Canberra was the only female athlete to jump triple back somersaults in finals and had the highest scoring jump of the day, scoring 97.38 points with her full-tuck-full, double twisting triple back somersault to advance to the top-six medal round in first place.
 
In the medal round, Peel was performing the difficult full-full-full triple twisting triple back somersault jump, but unfortunately had trouble on landing to score 77.70 points to just fall short of the podium.
 
While disappointed to miss the podium, Peel showed her class as the only triple jumper in a positive sign for the upcoming season.
 
Two-time Olympian and multiple World Championship medallist Danielle Scott qualified strongly in second place, and in finals just missed out on the medal round by less than two points, after scoring 79.38 points with her double full-full, triple twisting double back somersault.
 
Fanyu Kong from China took the win with a score of 89.53 points, with a tie for second place with Zhanbota Aldabergenova of Kazakhstan and Qi Shao of China both scoring 80.04 points.
 
Abbey Willcox made a strong return to competition after missing last season due to injury, just missing the 12-woman final in 14th place, with Gabi Ash in 27th and Airleigh Frigo 32nd in her World Cup debut.
 
Also making his World Cup debut in the men’s event was Wesley Naylor, who finished in 28th place.
 
The aerial skiing athletes will be back in action tonight in Ruka, with a single round World Cup and mixed team event to take place.

It was another golden performance for Australia’s Laura Peel overnight at the World Cup aerial skiing event in Yaroslavl, Russia, under lights taking victory for the second consecutive time this season.
 
The 31 year old World Champion from Canberra was the only female to perform triple somersault in the medal round, scoring 96.59 points with her full-tuck-full jump.
 
“I competed in my first ever World Cup 10 years ago today and celebrated the occasion with a win in Yaroslavl today”, Peel said after claiming the sixth World Cup victory of her career.
 
“It has been one hell of a ride, and we get to do it all again tomorrow.”
Behind Peel on the podium was American Ashley Caldwell (96.23) in second and Liubov Nikitina of Russia (93.41) in third.
 
Peels teammate Abbey Willcox qualified for finals in eighth place but was unable to take part after crashing her last jump in finals training and injuring her knee.
 
In the aerial skiing World Cup standings Peel maintained the world number one yellow leader’s bib on top of the field with a perfect 200 points after two competitions. Emma Weiss of Germany sits in second place with 109 points, with Ashley Caldwell in third place with 100 points.
 
Peel will be back in action tomorrow competing in the second World Cup event in Yaroslavl.

The Aerial Skiing program completed training camps at the Snow Australia water ramp facility in Victoria’s Yarra Ranges throughout May and June, before travelling to Mt Buller to train at the Olympic Training Centre facilities at the start of July.
 
The program relocated to NSW in mid-July following COVID restrictions being implemented in Victoria. The athletes and staff remained in Jindabyne throughout the domestic winter training on snow at Thredbo and utilising the acrobatic facilities onsite at Jindabyne Sport and Recreation Centre (JS&RC).
 
The highlight of the year was no doubt the opening of the Geoff Henke Olympic Winter Training Centre at Brisbane’s Sleeman Sports Centre. Australia’s freestyle skiers finally have a world class water jump in our own backyard.
 
Danielle Scott, Abbey Wilcox, Gabi Ash and Aerleigh Frigo commenced training at the new Henke Centre facility in late September, under the guidance of Olympic Silver Medalist and coach David Morris. The athletes plan to transfer the jumps from water to snow during the northern hemisphere winter.
 
Current World Cup Champion Laura Peel relocated to Switzerland at the start of July, completing a full summer of water ramp training, and then an on snow jumping block on the glacier in Saas Fee.
 
Peel will be the only Australian aerial skier in action in the opening World Cup of the season this weekend in Ruka, Finland, with her teammates continuing to train at the Henke Centre in Brisbane.

Australia’s best aerials and moguls skiers are set to soar through the Brisbane sky as they begin testing the new Olympic Winter Training Centre at the Sleeman Centre.

The $6.5 million facility is the first year-round outdoor aerial facility in the world.
 
A collaboration between the Australian Government through Sport Australia and the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS), Queensland Government, Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) and Olympic Winter Institute of Australia (OWIA),  the new home base for elite athletes will boost Australia’s talent and training pathways to identify and develop the next Lydia Lassila or Alisa Camplin, who grew from junior gymnasts to Winter Olympic champions.
 
Australia’s rich legacy in aerials and moguls has netted eight of Australia’s 15 Winter Olympic medals, including three gold.
 
The ‘Flying Kangaroos’ aerial ski team members Danielle Scott, Abbey Willcox, Gabi Ash and Airleigh Frigo are the first to trial the facility, beginning this week with single and basic double somersaults before progressing to larger jumps and more complex skills throughout the testing phase.
 
The moguls team, including PyeongChang 2018 silver medallist Matt Graham, current world number two Jakara Anthony and 2017 World Champion Britt Cox, will begin their training at the centre late next week.
 
From the top of the 37 metre high facility, athletes can reach maximum speeds of over 70km/h and launch up to 17 metres above the water, trialling and perfecting aerial manoeuvres in the safety of the water-landing before transferring them to the snow.
 
AOC CEO Matt Carroll said he was thrilled to see the project completed and athletes testing the centre.
 
“It’s fantastic to see this world class facility come to life and have Olympians showcasing their skills in Brisbane,” Mr Carroll said.
 
“This means Australia’s best talent can be identified, developed and reach their peak performance right here at home, while being close to family and their community. 
 
“Thank you to Minister Colbeck and the Australian Government, and Minister de Brenni and the Queensland Government for working in partnership with the AOC, OWIA and AIS to get a great result.”
 
Australian athletes have had to hone their skills overseas, with a water ramp facility in Utah having more than 3600 days of training logged by Australian athletes from 2013-2017.
 
“Having a home facility means this is time and funding that can be invested here in Australia rather than overseas facilities, providing greater opportunity to the next generation and bringing Australian sports fans closer than ever to our winter athletes.”
 
The centre has different jumps to cater for a wide variety of Olympic winter disciplines and experience levels, from beginner to the tallest triple jump.
 
OWIA CEO and Chef de Mission of the Australian Team for Beijing 2022 Geoff Lipshut welcomed the opportunity to give current athletes a performance edge and help identify and develop the next generation of Winter Olympians.
 
“This is a huge step forward for athletes at the next Olympic Games in 2022 and importantly for our athletes of tomorrow,” Mr Lipshut said.
 
“Through our partnership with Gymnastics Australia, this facility creates huge potential for gymnasts to successfully transfer their skills into aerial skiing.
 
“Our transition programs have already produced great Olympic champions in Alisa Camplin and Lydia Lassila, world champions in Kirstie Marshall and Jacqui Cooper and the current world number one, Laura Peel.
 
“This facility will provide a great opportunity for many more young Australians from around the country to get involved in winter sport.”
 
Minister for Youth and Sport Richard Colbeck said the Australian Government was proud to contribute funding to build this world class training base, ensuring ongoing support for our current elite athletes and future Winter Olympic champions.
 
“Through the AIS and Sport Australia, the Government has invested time, energy and funding into this facility because it will have a lasting impact and be a launching pad for generations of athletes and Winter Olympians to come.
 
“It’s great to see that a key feature of the facility is the different-sized ramps, allowing athletes to progress right from emerging talent through to those preparing to jump for Olympic gold.
 
“Our Winter athletes have traditionally been at a disadvantage compared to international rivals, having to travel, train, and compete overseas virtually the entire year. We now have a world-class training environment in our own backyard, which our inspiring athletes needed and deserved.”
 
Competing at the highest level of winter sport seemed a world away for World Cup gold medallist and dual Olympian Danielle Scott, growing up on Sydney’s northern beaches.
 
“In 2002 I was a gymnast and surfer who had never skied,” Scott said. “I watched Alisa Camplin win gold at Salt Lake City on TV and thought what an amazing sport.
 
“Being able to transition from gymnastics to aerials was a pathway I didn’t even know existed, but I’m so thankful as it’s given me incredible opportunities.
 
“I’m excited to see the local talent that can develop on this new facility, with young Australians able to see aerials in the flesh and know there’s a pathway for them to chase their own Olympic dream.
 
“This centre is an incredible opportunity for winter athletes to have a home training base and not be at the mercy of other countries – it will really give us an edge.”
 
The structure, comprising 289 tonnes of steel, measures 37m – equivalent to three Brisbane City Council buses stacked end to end. Elite winter athletes will now join cyclists, gymnasts, divers, swimmers, weightlifters and more at the Sleeman Centre.
 
Acting Manager of Sleeman Sports Complex Angus Macdonald said the new facility was ideally suited to the complex, which caters to high performance and developing athletes as well as community training. 
 
“This pool was purpose-built for this facility and while it’s wonderful that the community have had access to an additional pool in recent years, it’s great to finally see the facility up and running and watching the incredible skills of these high performance athletes and for our venue to play a small part in Australia’s push for Winter Olympic gold in 2022,” Mr Macdonald said.
“Our complex offers a range of supporting amenities like accommodation, gymnastics centre, a fitness centre, and athlete rehabilitation which will be a great benefit to any teams looking for a comprehensive training camp option, and the proximity to other facilities helps create those development pathways for other athletes that might like to give the sport a try.”
 
The official opening of the facility is expected to occur in 2021.

Australian aerial skier Laura Peel has won gold overnight at the Siberian resort of Krasnoyarsk, Russia, securing her first ever FIS World Cup champion title.
 
The World Cup title is the tenth “crystal globe” won by Australian aerial skiers, with Peel joining legends of the sport Kirstie Marshall, Jacqui Cooper, Alisa Camplin and Lydia Lassila as World Cup champions.
 
Before the competition Peel was sitting just 44 points ahead of China’s Xu Mengtao in the women’s World Cup ranking, with the final jumps of the season deciding who would take home the overall season title.
 
When Xu failed to land her jump cleanly in the first round of finals and missed the cut into the top six final round, it was clear that Peel would be victorious. Despite having secured the crystal globe in the middle of the competition, Peel still stepped it up on her final attempt on the day. As the last athlete in the women’s competition, the 2015 World Champion from Canberra executed her most difficult full-tuck-full triple somersault perfectly to win the competition with a final score of 96.99 points.
 
“It’s hard to put it into words at the moment,” said Peel, “I honestly couldn’t be happier right now.
 
“It’s my first globe and it’s been almost 10 years working towards it. I have a great team around me and I’m super stoked with the result today.”
 
Behind Peel on the podium was China's Xu Sicun with a score of 95.86 in second place and American Ashley Caldwell in third with 88.83 points.
 
In winning gold, the performance marks the 13th World Cup podium of the 30 year old athletes career (4 gold, 4 silver, 5 bronze).
 
Peel’s teammate Abbey Willcox also reached the top six super final finishing in fifth place, ending the season ranked a personal best seventh place on the World Cup standings.