It was a tough night for the Aussies on the aerial hill at the Zhangjiakou Genting Snow Park, with intermittent light tail winds and the thermometer dropping below -30 degrees.

Training before the final saw almost all athletes struggle to find their feet, but on home territory the clear standout was Xu Mengtao who consistently landed her triple-twisting triple-back to eventually claim the gold.

Laura Peel and Danielle Scott both qualified for finals. Danielle was unable land either of her jumps in the finals, ending her Olympic campaign in tenth position. Laura scraped in a landing on her second jump to qualify for the super final in fourth position with 100.02 points. In the super final she crashed, ending the night in fifth position.

The debutant Gabi Ash, whose degree of difficult was the only thing stopping her from qualifying, performed strongly and has put herself in a great position for the future.

Laura, having performed strongly in the lead up to these Games, was extremely disappointed with her performance.

"Yep, I was pretty disappointed, and I know I can jump better than I did tonight," Laura said.

"I wish I would have done that.

"I don't really think that I have any excuses, I knew it was a big jump I had to stretch a little bit earlier. I waited until the last flip and that was a little bit too late and I couldn't put it to my feet.

"That jump is well with in my range, I can do it really nicely. At the last comp I scored 118 points on it, so I can do it a lot better than I did it tonight."

Danielle was equally disappointed. She pushed it really hard but was unable to find her feet on the night.

"It's brutal out here. I tried to give it my everything, but it's a lot of pressure. I really tried to put it all on the line but I was just feeling a little off, I guess you know it was just not what I wanted."

When talking about her future she spoke about being able to train at home and the convenience of Brisbane's Geoff Henke Olympic Winter Training Centre.

"With the water ramp in Australia now it makes our life a lot easier. We can now actually spend some time on home soil."

23-year-old Gabi Ash put down two solid jumps in qualifying, but didn't make it into the finals due to having a lower degree of difficult than the rest of the field.

"[I was] pretty excited I got two jumps to my feet, and they were clean so I'm really happy. I could have done the first one a bit better but all in all, I'm pretty happy," Gabi said.

"The main thing that I've learned through this experience is just to enjoy the sport that I'm doing here. Everyone has been great, so supportive and helpful. It's just been a really fun experience all around."

She is also looking forward to getting home and training in Brisbane.

"It's awesome to have a training facility that is on home soil that we can easily get too and maybe be able to study, see family and friends. There's a lot more of a work-life balance."

olympics.com.au
Jonathan Sweet

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.

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.

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

VIS Aerial Skiers have been training in Utah, USA, since mid December. Five athletes in their first and second years with the program have enjoyed the excellent skiing conditions at Snowbasin resort with Coach Leigh Delahoy, between sessions on the jump hill at the Utah Olympic Park, (UOP). 

World Cup Aerial Skiing coach Manuela Muller, and athletes Britt George, Gabi Ash and Airleigh Frigo arrived in late December, for a training camp and Nor Am competition at the UOP before the opening World Cup event of the season in Lake Placid, USA, on January 19.   

Britt George and Gabi Ash will travel to Lake Placid early this week to join the rest of the Australian team, 2015 World Champion Laura Peel and Abbey Wilcox for next weekend’s competition in New York State, which will be the World Cup debut starts for Ash, George and Wilcox. 

IMAGE - VIS Aerial Skiers at Snowbasin, Utah, USA. From left to right: Isabel Cameron, Amanda Cordeiro, Mia Rennie, Eleanor Higginbotham and Leigh Delahoy

VIS Aerial Skiing athletes Brittany George and Gabrielle Ash just missed the podium on day two at the FIS Nor-Am events at the Utah Olympic Park in Utah, USA.
 
The event, held in challenging snowy and windy conditions, provided good experience as the two athletes prepare for the opening FIS Aerial Skiing World Cup of the season, scheduled in Lake Placid, USA, on Saturday January 19.
 
Also in action in her first ever competition, Airleigh Frigo finished in 13th place on day one and 11th on day two