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.

VIS Aerial Skier Laura Peel has moved into number one on the World Cup standings with one event remaining, after finishing fourth in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

Peel qualified for finals in first place, and went through to the medal final also in first, but unfortunately missed her landing on her Full-Tuck-Full triple back somersault, just missing the podium by one place.

Taking the win was Nadiya Mokhnatska of the Ukraine, with American Megan Nick in second, and local skier Zhanbota Aldabergenova of Kazakhstan in third.

Ahead of the final event, Peel sits in first in place on the World Cup standings with 369 points, with Mengtao Xu of China in second with 325 points, and Aliaksandra Ramanouskaya from Belarus third with 260 points.

Abbey Willcox finished in 14th place, and currently sits 12th on the standings.

The final event of the season will take place in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, on March 8th.

Australian aerial skier Laura Peel has claimed victory overnight at the FIS World Cup event at the Raubichi ski resort in Minsk, Belarus, recording her first gold medal and third podium performance of the season.
 
The 2015 World Champion from Canberra achieved the highest jump score of her career to win gold, scoring a huge 106.53 points with her full-tuck-full, double twisting, triple backflip somersault.  
 
Rounding out the podium was Mengtao Xu of China, and her teammate Sicun Xu in third.
 
“It’s an amazing feeling”, an excited Peel commented after the event.
 
“I’ve definitely been wanting to crack the 100 point mark for a while, I came pretty close last week. But to put down my best jumps when it matters is awesome, all the hard work is coming together.”
 
“It was tough out there, last week we weren’t sure if the event would even be able to go ahead but everyone put in a lot of work so we could jump tonight. We didn’t get a lot of training jumps and today we had some wind and rain, but I think it’s those kind of moments where my experience really pays off.”
 
“We’ve got two events left and I want to keep doing my best jumps and gain more and more experience on the triple.”
 
The performance marks the third World Cup victory of the VIS athletes career (3 gold, 4 silver, 5 bronze).
 
Following the victory, Peel has now moved up into second place on the FIS World Cup standings with two events remaining in the season. Peel is on 319 points, just 6 points behind World Cup leader Mengtao Xu of China.

Unfortunately VIS teammate Abbey Willcox was unable to compete after sustaining an injury during training.

The next stop on the World Cup tour for the aerial skiing athletes will take place next weekend in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

VIS aerial skier Laura Peel has claimed a silver medal in a spectacular city venue located in downtown Moscow, Russia, her second World Cup podium performance of the season.
 
The 2015 World Champion from Canberra performed one of the best triple back somersaults of her career in the first round of finals, with her lay-tuck-full jump scoring 98.68 points to advance to the super final in first place.
 
In the super final medal round, Peel increased her degree of difficulty, adding an extra twist to her triple, competing a full-tuck-full jump. Peel scored 91.42 points to finish in second place, with Belarusian Hannah Huskova taking the win and Russian Sofia Alekseeva rounding out the podium in third place.
 
“I’m really happy with how my season is going,” Peel commented after the event.
 
“The plan going in was to qualify for finals with my triple twisting doubles and keep them at a high standard and then compete triples for finals. It’s my first year on the triple and I’m getting a lot of awesome experience, and I’m excited for what’s to come.”
 
“It was an awesome set up jumping in the city. There was a big crowd and fireworks, they really made it a show which was a lot of fun.”
 
“We had six women jumping triple backflips in the final and that’s really cool to see. The women’s field is continuing to push and that’s exciting for the sport. “
 
In taking silver, the performance marks the 11th World Cup podium of the 30 year old athletes career (2 gold, 4 silver, 5 bronze).
 
With two events remaining in the season, Laura Peel is currently ranked third on the FIS World Cup standings, with teammate Abbey Willcox in seventh, after finishing 14th in Moscow.
 
The next stop on the World Cup tour for the aerial skiing athletes will take place next weekend in Raubichi, Belarus. 

Abbey Willcox has had a breakthrough performance to claim the first World Cup medal of her career, winning bronze under lights in Deer Valley, USA.
 
The 23 year old VIS athlete qualified for finals in fourth place, and finished in fifth place in the first round of finals to advance to the top six super final.
 
Willcox landed her lay-full double back somersault in the super final, to give her 81.78 points and the bronze medal, with 2019 World Champion Aliaksandra Ramanouskaya of Belarus taking victory with a big score of 106.74, and American Megan Nick in second place with 83.89 points.
 
“It feels absolutely unreal and to be doing it in Deer Valley with this crowd is amazing,” an excited Willcox said after the event.
 
“A lot of nerve’s, a lot of adrenaline, a lot of excitement.”
 
“It was my first time in the finals and on the podium so I had all sorts of emotions going on.”
 
“We has a couple of tricky days training, it was snowing a lot and I knew I could jump during the snow, during the wind because we’ve had a lot of practice for that in the past, so I just took it jump by jump.”
 
“I’m really excited for the next four world cups and the season and I can’t wait.”
 
2015 Australian World Champion Laura Peel qualified for finals in third place, but unfortunately fell on her triple back somersault in the first round of finals, finishing in ninth place.

Also competing for Australian in her second World Cup was VIS athlete Gabi Ash, who finished in 20th position.
 
After three events, Laura Peel is currently ranked third in the world, with Willcox moving up to sixth on the FIS World Cup standings.
 
The next stop on the World Cup tour for the aerial skiing athletes will take place in Moscow, Russia, with a spectacular city event, with the aerial site made out of scaffolding and snow trucked in.

Australian aerial skier Laura Peel has claimed a bronze medal at the 2019/2020 World Cup season opener at Shimao Lotus Mountain in China.
 
The VIS athlete performed her first ever triple back somersaults in competition with great success, scoring 87.92 points in the first round of finals with a lay-tuck-full, and 86.65 in the medal round with a full-tuck-full.
 
In taking bronze, the performance marks the tenth World Cup podium of the 30 year old athletes career (2 gold, 3 silver, 5 bronze).
 
“It’s an amazing start to the season. Competing with triples at a World Cup was a big milestone of mine, and to come away with a podium makes it even sweeter.”
 
“The conditions were really good. We all took a couple of days to adjust to a much steeper landing hill than what we had been training on in Finland, but the sun was out and there was minimal wind which made conditions great for jumping.”
 
Peel finished narrowly behind Belarus aerialist Aliaksandra Ramanousk 93.44 and China’s Mengtao Xu scoring 105.53 with the judges.
 
For Peel there’s a busy season ahead after a short Christmas break.
 
“After tomorrow, I’m looking forward to enjoying some R&R over Christmas. Then my team start training again in Switzerland in January ahead of the next World Cup in Moscow, Russia.”

Also in action for Australia was Abbey Willcox, who finished in 14th place, just missing the 12 woman final.

A second World Cup event also took place at Shimao Lotus Mountain, with a one jump competition being held on day two, before a team World Cup event that Australia did not feature in.

Peel landed another triple back somersault, a lay-tuck-full, narrowly missing the podium by less than a point in fourth place.

Abbey Willcox had a personal best World Cup finish of 12th.

The next event for Australia's aerial skiing athletes will be in Moscow, Russia, on January 25.

VIS Aerial Skier Laura Peel has won the second World Cup event of her career, after finishing on top in Shimao Lotus Mountain, China.

Her result was a well-deserved reward after a second place finish in Moscow just two weeks ago.

Peel qualified for the final in fourth place with a 84.42 point full-full jump, and used the same jump to progress to the top six super final.

In the super final, Peel stepped up her degree of difficulty, performing a 96.58 full-double full jump to easily take the victory, 14.8 points ahead of second place.

“I couldn’t be happier with how today went! We had some really tricky conditions with the temperature in double digits, and some swirling winds," Peel said of her second World Cup win.

"I'm very grateful to my coaches for getting my speed right on all my jumps and super stoked I was able to put all my jumps down.”

Peel placed 10th the following day during the second event, while teammate Abbey Willcox finished 15th in the first event and 14th in the second and first year VIC World Cup program athlete Brittany George placed 16th in the first and 13th in the second.

With China the final stop in the World Cup season, Peel has finished a personal best third in the world on the standings, improving on her previous best of fourth achieved in 2012 and 2013.

IMAGE - A happy Laura Peel with her gold medal in China © Laura Peel Instagram

olympics.com.au

VIS Aerial Skier Laura Peel has finished in 11th place at the World Cup event in Minsk, Belarus, maintaining her fourth place world ranking with one event left in the season.

The VIS skier made a strong start to the event, qualifying in second place for the final with a 88.20 full-full jump, but unfortunatley missed her landing in the final to finish in 11th place.

Peel said she was disappointed to not put down the jump she'd hoped for in the finals.

“I am a bit disappointed about the result. I jumped well in qualifications, but unfortunately had a bit of trouble landing in finals," she said.

Abbey Willcox recorded a personal best World Cup finish of 13th, narrowly missing out on qualifying for the 12-woman final after scoring 75.98 on her lay-full jump.

OWIA Apprentice Coach David Morris was satisfied with solid performances by the pair considering their preparation.

“Laura and Abbey both jumped very well given they had very little training leading into the competition day.

"As a coaching group we are very impressed they were able to perform so well after being sick leading into the event,” he said.

Also in Minsk, a syncro team event was held, with the team of Peel and Willcox finishing in third place after competing their lay-full jump at the same time off different jumps.

The Flying Kangaroos Australian Aerial Ski Team now head to China, for the final World Cup event of the year on March 2nd.

IMAGE - Laura Peel and Abbey Willcox (right) on the podum at the syncro team event in Minsk © Abbey Willcox Instagram

The Flying Kangaroos Australian Aerial Ski Team has competed in a number of warm-up events in Lake Placid, NY, USA, ahead of the World Championships in Deer Valley, UT, USA, on February 6th.

With only the one World Cup prior to the World Championships, a strong field was in attendance with all countries looking to get extra competition starts before the main event of the season.

In Lake Placid, the team competed in the US National Championships and in the first of two Nor-Am events.

In the US National Championships, VIS athlete Laura Peel scored an 81.78 to take second place, with team-mates Abbey Willcox 11th and Brittany George 21st. In the men’s event, Wesley Naylor finished 25th.

Britt George and Abbey Willcox where the only Australians competing in the Nor-Am. VIS skier George secured her first career Continental Cup victory finishing in first place, and Wilcox just missed finals in seventh.

The Flying Kangaroos will now head to Utah, USA, to prepare for the World Championships.

IMAGE - Laura Peel (left) on the podium in Lake Placid © Winter Vinecki Instagram

The opening World Cup of the 2018-2019 season has taken place in Lake Placid, NY, USA, with Laura Peel the top Australian performer in tenth place.

The VIS skier made made a strong start qualifying in sixth place with an 81.27 point full-full jump.

In the twelve woman final, Peel attempted the higher degree of difficulty full - double full jump, electing to go for higher risk in preparation for the World Championships. Unfortunately Peel was deep on her landing, and just missed the super final to finish in tenth.

Also competing for Australia was Britt George in 20th with Gabi Ash and Abbey Willcox making their World Cup debut's to finish in 22nd and 23rd.

The next event for the Flying Kangaroos Australian Aerial Ski Team is the World Championships in Park City, UT, USA.
IMAGE - Laura Peel sending one high in the night sky at Lake Placid © OWIA/Lachy Keevers

The Flying Kangaroos Australian Aerial Ski Team took part in a warm up Europa Cup event in Ruka, Finland, over the weekend, with the highlight being two athletes achieving podium performances.
 
On day one, Abbey Willcox finished in second place, which was the best Europa Cup performance of her career.
 
On day two VIS athletes Laura Peel and Britt George recovered from a disappointing day one performances, with Peel taking the win, George in fifth place and Wilcox tenth.
 
The Flying Kangaroos will continue training in Ruka thought to Christmas, before resuming in North America in January for the first World Cup of the season in Lake Placid, USA, on January 19.

IMAGE: Laura Peel (left) and Abbey Willcox (right), podium athletes in Ruka

OWIA/VIS athletes Laura Peel and Danielle Scott have started the season in great form, both recording victories in a warm up Europa Cup competition in Ruka, Finland.
 
With many of the world’s top athletes currently in Ruka preparing for the World Cup season, a strong field competed in two events.
 
On day one, Laura Peel jumped two well executed double back somersaults to take first place. Samantha Wells and Danielle Scott struggled with their landings finishing in 16th and 26th.
 
On day two, Danielle Scott rebounded strongly, competing two triple twisting double back somersaults to finish over 10 points clear in first place. Laura Peel claimed her second medal, finishing in third place, with Sam Wells also improving from day one to finish in tenth.
 
David Morris improved on his day one finish of 18th to place 12th on day two.
 
VIS development athletes also competed in the event, with Brittany George recording the highest place finish, with a 12th place day two performance. Abbey Willcox had her best result on day two finishing in 20th. The event was the first Aerial Skiing career starts for Gabi Ash and Alice Neill, with Gabi 15th on day one and Alice 19th on day two.
 
The first World Cup for the OWIA/VIS athletes will take place in Secret Garden, China, on December 16-17.

IMAGE: Daniel Scott (left) and Laure Peel (right), Europa Cup winners in Ruka, Finland.

Andrew Pattison
OWIA

With the first World Cup of the season two weeks away, Danielle Scott has showed she is well placed for a strong season following back-to-back Europa Cup victories in Ruka, Finland.
 
The wins were achieved on the back of four well-executed competition jumps, with her Day Two performance particularly impressive with a two jump score of 187.96, almost 20 points clear of second place.
 
Scott was joined on the podium on Day One by her Flying Kangaroos teammate and current World Champion, Laura Peel, who finished third in her first event since March 2015. In the second event Laura finished in sixth place.
 
Samantha Wells had two top ten results, with a fifth place Day Two performance being the highlight.
 
Olympic Silver Medallist David Morris elected not to compete, as he manages some minor injuries early in the season.
 
Flying Kangaroo development athletes Britt George, Abbey Willcox and Harrison Tulberg all made their competition debuts coached by Olympian and Victorian Institute of Sport Technical Coach Bree Munro. The three athletes all had near perfect scores in their back layout and back tuck single backflip jumps. Britt George was the highest placed with a 14th finish in the second event.
 
The opening World Cup event will take place in Beida Lake, China, on December 16-17.

PHOTO: Danielle Scott (middle) and Laura Peel (right) on the podium in Finland