Crystal Globes winners, snowboarder Scotty James and aerial skier Laura Peel, were today named the joint winners of the Olympic Athlete of the Year title for the 2020 Snow Australia Awards.
 
After an outstanding Northern winter that saw them both finish the season ranked number one in the World, the pair once again have been named joint winners of the award, previously sharing the title in 2015. 
 
Triple Olympian James now becomes the first person in history of the Snow Australia Awards to win the Athlete of the Year Award four times.
 
It was an extraordinary season for both athletes, with dual Olympian Peel claiming her career first Crystal Globe, and James becoming the overall season champion for the third time.
 
Peel finished the season with two gold, one silver and one bronze medal, in her first year jumping triple back somersaults.
 
The 30-year-old Canberra local said that this season far exceeded the expectations she had set for herself before it commenced.
 
“It was a great season - was pretty magic for me,” Peel said.
 
“I went in doing triples and completing triples for the first time - so the goal wasn’t to win the Crystal Globe, it was to gain some experience doing triples.
 
“But that (winning the Crystal Globe) has been a dream of mine pretty much since I started the sport so this was a really amazing season,” she said.
 
James successfully defended his X-Games titles and won the Dew Tour event in Copper Mountain. He qualified first in every World Cup event, before going on to finish the season with three golds and one silver World Cup medals.
 
James echoed Peel’s sentiments, adding that he feels extremely honoured to be named Athlete of the Year amongst some great talent in his fellow finalists.
 
“It’s getting harder every year to win this award, so each year brings a different excitement,” James said.
 
“I’m very happy to be the winner of this award, alongside Laura again. She’s been amazing and I’ve been watching from afar. As winter athletes we don’t get to be together that often so it’s been good to watch and support each other from afar.”
 
Snow Australia Chief Executive Officer Michael Kennedy said he couldn’t think of two more deserving winners for the title of Athlete of the Year (Olympic Disciplines) than Scotty and Laura.
 
“Scotty and Laura had fantastic seasons. They are both pushing themselves and their sport to the next level,” Kennedy said.
 
“Scotty’s consistent results made him unstoppable this season and it’s great to see him once again be crowned our Athlete of the Year,” he said.
 
“As for Laura, she now joins Aerials royalty in becoming World Cup Champion joining the greats of our sport in Kirstie Marshall, Jacqui Cooper, Alisa Camplin and Lydia Lassila in that honour.
 
The Athlete of the Year award caps off what has been a fantastic celebration of Australia’s snowsports athletes as part of the 2020 Snow Australia Awards online.
 
For a full list of Award winners - click here.
 

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

Dual-Olympian Laura Peel claimed silver at the Moscow Aerial Skiing World Cup over the weekend, with the 2015 World Champion now sitting third in the World Cup standings.
The VIS athlete qualified in first at the event, before taking out round one of finals with the highest scoring (97.99) double somersault of the competition.
In the second final, Peel performed a double full-full, giving her a score of 97.64 and earning her the silver medal behind the current World Champion Belarus' Aliaksandra Ramanouskya, at 105.93 with a double twisting triple somersault.
It's been a steady rise for the highest ranked Australian female PyeongChang 2018 Olympian, who recently was very unlucky to miss the podium in fourth place at the World Championships in Deer Valley.
After winning her first medal of the season, Peel told FIS TV she was thrilled with a memorable podium finish.
"I was really happy with my jumps today, I put down the best I could and came away with second place so I'm super happy to be on the podium," she said.
"Through each round I put down a really solid jump. I stuck to my plan and completed both my triple twisting doubles. It couldn't have gone better.
"It felt super-sweet after just missing that podium in Deer Valley last weekend," she finished.

After her medal, the 29-year-old posted on social media, "Happy. Proud. Grateful. Second place for me at this weekend’s World Cup! Thanks for the memories Moscow."

The Flying Kangaroos Australian Aerial Ski Team now head to Minsk, Belarus, for the next World Cup event on February 23.

IMAGES
Top -The spectacular jump site in Moscow
Bottom - Laura Peel (left) celebrates on the Moscow Podium
© FIS - Alexey Shabanov

olympics.com.au

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

ustralian Olympic Team Chef de Mission Ian Chesterman reflects on the Australian PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games team.

We finish these Games in an exciting place for the future. This is the best performed Australian team at an OWG by many measures.

We didn’t produce gold that’s true, but if you look a little closer you’ll see why I am so pleased with our results at these Games.

We’ve matched the number of medals previously won, but demonstrated a depth of elite results that we have not seen before. We have for the first time 3 new medal winners at one Games.

We have more top six results than ever before – seven - all who made finals. Our medallists are 22, 23 and 23 – and we can expect all to be back in Beijing in 2022.

We had more opportunities than ever before, and I think that depth is the biggest change in the last four years.
The overall results demonstrate the program success we are having in moguls, SBX and HP.

Not only did Matt Graham win silver, we saw Jakara Anthony, just 19, finish 4th and Britt Cox 5th.

Matt was beaten by the greatest mogul skier of all time in Mikal Kingsbury.

In the top six in men and women for moguls, Australia had three athletes. Canada had four and no other country had more than one. We also had a 14 and a 20th.

So it was a highly successful moguls group with so much promise for the future.

Our snowboard cross athletes performed superbly. Three men in one semi final, two in the final, a result of 2nd, 6th and 10th, indicates that this program works.

I particularly congratulate Jarryd and I’m delighted that he will carry the flag for Australia into the Closing Ceremony.

Half pipe also produced two top ten results including the medal for Scotty James. The men’s final was one of the feature events at the Games. In the end Scotty couldn’t beat the greatest of all time in Shaun White, but demonstrated that he is a prodigious talent with an incredible future ahead.

Laura Peel was top five in woman’s aerials and Sami Kennedy Sim’s eighth was a strong result for the Ski Cross team, and could have easily been even better.

Greta Small had the best Alpine result ever by an Australian woman, our cross country had best ever results including a 12 from 21 result in the teams event. Our sliding sports – Luge, Skeleton and Bob – all did us proud.

Our figure skaters inspired us and looked completely at home on the Olympic stage. Harley Windsor created history by becoming our first indigenous Winter Olympian.

Our ice racers gave their all and kept the dream of Olympic representation alive for their sports.

I would also like to record my thanks to one athlete, Lydia Lassila, for her outstanding career over five Olympic Games and for the legacy that she leaves.

Injuries took their toll.

Tess Coady’s unfortunate end remains the low point of the Games for me. An immensely talented 17 year-old was denied her chance to perform in events that were dominated by teenagers. Who knows what might have been.
Russ Henshaw, Brodie Summer and Belle Brockhoff were all handicapped by pre-Games issues, as was Jess Rich, who still managed to finish just one spot out of the finals in Big Air.

Our aerial skiers, so long the back bone of our team at the Winters, missed out on a medal for the first time since 2002. Laura Peel made the final to finish a highly credible 5th. Thanks to Dave Morris for another stellar performance, unlucky to miss progressing through the finals but clearly establishing himself as a champion athlete and a champion person.

The rest of the world is catching up, has caught up, demonstrating the need for our own water ramp facility.

Our athletes are committed and excellent but we are struggling to provide an environment that matches those of their rivals.

Simply, we need a water ramp training venue. Not only will a water ramp be great for our athletes it will bring a major economic boost to the host region with our athletes and international teams visiting to train.

Building a half pipe is also essential and I thank the Federal Government and Sports Minister Bridget McKenzie, for their on-going commitment to these projects. Both are crying out for a home.

The performances both on and off the field of play has been exceptional.

Our team has been thrilled with the support they have received from home. It seems our sports and our athletes have captured the interest and hearts of Australians as never before. The decency of our athletes has been on show for all to see.

I thank all the media here and at home who have embraced our team and shared our stories. Every time an athlete has gone out to compete here in PyeongChang, the Aussie spirit of giving it a go has shone through, and you have provided a platform for our athletes to inspire many at home.

PyeongChang must be congratulated for putting on a wonderful Olympic Winter Games. Everything worked, the Koreans were so friendly and helpful, and the venues were superb.

I thank the AOC staff and team staff who have worked so hard to plan and operate this team.

Let me conclude by saying that I’ve been with our winter team since in Lillehammer in 1994, and it is the best team I have ever been involved in.

Ian Chesterman

Laura Peel has just missed out securing a fourth PyeongChang medal to Australia's tally after finishing fifth in the women’s aerials.

Peel attempted a Back Double Full-Full in the Super Final where she over-rotated and then back-slapped on her landing scoring 55.34.

Hanna Huskova of Belarus took the gold medal with a score of 96.14, ahead of Chinese duo Xin Zhang (95.52) and Fanyu Kong (70.41).

“My goal was to make the top six, the Super Final, and I did that,” Peel said.

“We did our best out there. I had a huge group of supporters in the crowd so I was definitely feeling the love. 

In difficult conditions the 2015 World Champion had trouble picking the wind all night.

“I was a bit slow on the first two jumps, I just squeaked out the second jump which I might not have done if I wasn’t in an Olympic Final.

“I took a step up to get a bit quicker for the final jump and got an extra 4km when we were hoping for 1.5km.
“I did what I could.”

Earlier, the dual Olympian moved through to Final 2 with a score of 85.05 for her Back Full-Full.

She then progressed to the Super Final with a Back Full Double-Full that scored 85.65 to head into the final six as the third ranked athlete.

Teammate Danielle Scott, needing to be in the top nine to progress from Final 1 to Final 2, backslapped while attempting a Back Full-Full.

The 2017 World Championship silver medallist scored 57.01 to finish the competition in 12th.

The duo had progressed through yesterday’s qualifications to make the final 12, while five-time Olympian Lydia Lassila and Samantha Wells missed the Finals finishing 14th and 17th.

Australia had won an aerials medal at each of the past four Winter Olympic Games with Alisa Camplin winning gold and bronze in 2002 and 2006, and Lydia Lassila winning gold and bronze in 2010 and 2014.

Matt Bartolo
olympics.com.au

Sochi Olympians Danielle Scott and Laura Peel have qualified for the women's Aerials finals on Friday night after a nail biting evening at Phoenix Snow Park. 

The first of the Aussies to hit the course, Scott progressed straight through to the finals after scoring 93.76 in her first qualification run. 

With Peel, dual Olympian Sam Wells and five-time Olympian Lydia Lassila finishing outside of the top 6 in teir first attempts, it all came down to the second qualification run to see which of the Aussie women would join Scott in the finals. 

After scoring 64.86 in her first run, 28-year-old Peel scored 89.46 in Run 2 and secured herself a spot in Friday's finals after finishing in third place. 

“I made a mistake on the first run today so hopefully thats out of the system," Peel said.

“You’re trying to think like it’s not the Olympics, its just any day and you’re trying to nail that jump.

"I feel confident that I still have good jumps [in the bag] and I just need to put them down tomorrow."

Making her fifth and final Olympic appearance, a crash by Vancouver 2010 bronze medallist Lassila saw her score 66.27 and finish in 14th place. 

"This is an outside sport and you can't control a lot of things and tonight I just couldn't control the speed," she said.
With an Olympic career spanning nearly two decades, Lassila said she was disappointed with her final Winter Games performance.

"It's a feeling of loss in a way ... you've lost an opportunity but that's sport and you've got to reflect on the good and happy moments that I've had with my kids, my family, my friends -- life is good," she said.

"Five olympics, I never thought I'd go to five, never win a a gold.

"I love this ... I'll miss it."

The 37-year-old added that while she was "bummed" about Thursday's result, she was incredibly proud of herself and happy to finish her World Cup career prior to PyeongChang with a gold and bronze in Lake Placid, USA.

"It's been a wild ride to bring the boys along and have them at training camps and just prove that you can do it as a mother ... you can do it all," she said.

"I'm really proud of that campaign that I could manage to do that, it's not easy. It's not easy for an athlete that's 17-years-old with no responsibilities but for a 36-year-old with real-life responsibilities, it's a challenge to make sure that no-one is missing out on anything, that everyone has got their needs met, not just myself."

Teammate Laura Peel said that Lassila was an "incredible woman" who has "done so much" for Aerial Skiing in Australia.

Wells finished in 17th place with a score of 58.27. 

David Barden
olympics.com.au

FREESTYLE SKIING: Nothing can stop Australia’s freestyle aerial skiers from throwing their biggest tricks at PyeongChang 2018. Not weather, not pressure, and not fear.

After landing in South Korea on Tuesday, the team – made up of veteran Lydia Lassila, David Morris, Laura Peel, Samantha Wells and Danielle Scott – are excited about the week of competition ahead.

An intensive training camp in Ruka, Finland, over the past several weeks has put the squad in a strong position to compete for places in the Super 6 final, and even an Olympic medal.

David Morris, who will make his third Olympic appearance in PyeongChang, completed one of the most difficult tricks in freestyle aerial skiing just last week and he won’t be holding back from throwing it again in PyeongChang.

“It’s a medal winning jump, obviously landing is crucial but if I get into the top 6 there’s no way I’m not doing that skill,” Morris said.

The trick, a double full/double full/full – best described as three flips and five twists – has only ever been performed by three other athletes with Morris eager to be the fourth.

It’s with a sense of relief and accomplishment that Morris wants everyone to know he’s ‘peaking at the right time’, he’s ready to land the hardest skill he’s ever done and in reality, it was pretty easy.

“I’ve been ready for quite a while, I just had to man up and do it and it was easier than I thought it would be, but very very scary,” he said.

“I haven’t come all (that) way to just back down at the last minute. I think even if the weather’s not perfect, I’m still throwing that down.

“My coach is like ‘if there’s an opportunity to change it to an easier one maybe we’ll go easier’, I’m like ‘no’.

“I don’t feel like it’s dangerous to do anymore… if I’m in the super final obviously you’ve been landing and you’re on fire and there isn’t any reason why we wouldn’t do it after that so I wouldn’t have any hesitation.”

Morris’ courage and commitment is shared by the team, who come into PyeongChang with varied experience.

Peel made her Olympic debut at Sochi 2014 where she finished seventh, and since then has consolidated her performance.

“I still have the same basic self, same foundation (and) still the same beliefs but I feel a lot more prepared, a lot more confident, I’m more consistent with my tricks and there are a lot of similarities of course but now I feel more prepared and more myself and ready to go after it, “she said.

Teammate Scott is primed to perform a quadruple-twisting double somersault; she is the first Australian woman to complete the trick on snow.

“If I get to the round where I need it (I’ll do it) for sure,” she said.

“I think I was the first Aussie to do it on snow, but both Lydia and I have done it recently so it’s pretty exciting… I’ll definitely take advantage of being able to do that if I get the opportunity to.”

For Lassila, her tactics are a little different. She has four Winter Olympic Games on her CV already and after Sochi 2014 she even took a break from the sport.

However her passion and motivation for aerials didn’t weaken, nor did her body. And so she decided to line up again, putting herself in contention for a place on the Australian Olympic Team.

The dual Olympic medallist (gold Vancouver 2010, bronze Sochi 2014) recently claimed a first and a second place at Lake Placid World Cups in the United States, but she’s approaching things a little differently in her final Olympic campaign.

“Some athletes will go big which is really exciting, but it won’t be me. I’m kind of weening out so I’m on the double, which is a lot less stressful on my body and mind,” she said.

“(I’m) still competitive on the double… I’ve got some consistency there, I’ve got some experience there obviously.

“Anyone can make a mistake so my aim is to just keep consistent and not make any big mistakes.”

Second timer Wells said the secret to Australian freestyle skiers keeping their calm under pressure was nothing more than good old fashioned banter.

“It helps to keep it a bit lighter when things get a bit more stressful,” she said.

And in the end, it could come down to the conditions on the day. Morris has said he won’t be swayed by the weather, but for the majority of the field PyeongChang could prove to be one of the toughest challenges yet.

“Weather and wind is obviously a factor that this place is known for, and that does effect us so fingers crossed mother nature cooperates with us and I think it will be really good,” Scott said.

Freestyle skiing aerials starts with women’s qualifications on Day 6 (Thursday 15 February) with women’s finals on Day 7 (Friday 16 February) and men’s finals on Day 9 (Sunday 18 February).

Candice Keller

AERIALS: Australia’s aerial skiers will look to build on their rich tradition of Winter Olympic success when a team of five high flyers hit the jumps at the PyeongChang 2018 Games.


The team features a full contingent of Aussie women with dual Olympic medallist Lydia Lassila lining up at her fifth Winter Olympic Games alongside 2017 World Championship silver medallist Danielle Scott, 2015 World Champion Laura Peel and Sochi 2014 Olympian Samantha Wells.

Sochi 2014 silver medallist and 2017 World Championship bronze medallist David Morris will fly the flag in the men’s competition.

While the accolades for each member of this team are exceptional there is none more astounding than those of 2010 Olympic Champion and 2014 Olympic bronze medallist Lassila.

With so much adversity throughout her career it is astonishing to think she has made it to the start line of her fifth straight Olympic Games, let alone be well in contention to win an Australian record third Winter Olympic medal at PyeongChang.

“I never dreamed of going to 5 Olympics or having a career this long,” said Lassila who claimed a gold and silver medal at back-to-back World Cup events in Lake Placid last weekend.

“I’ve learned so much about myself, endured set backs and celebrated the victories.

“I love my sport, I love my country and that’s what has kept me coming back.”

The team has been in strong form throughout the season with Peel also claiming dual bronze medals in Lake Placid and Scott winning World Cup gold in China. The trio of Scott, Wells and Morris then linked up to win silver in the non-Olympic team event in Secret Garden.

“I competed all the jumps that I will be competing in PyeongChang in Lake Placid so doing that and finishing on the podium definitely gives me a confidence boost,” Peel said.

“However I know every day is a new day and everyone will be bringing their A game to the Olympics so right now it’s about getting back to work and building consistency.

“It’s just as exciting to be selected the second time around. I know more what to expect this time amd I think that experience will help me to really focus on the task at hand.

“I’m also looking forward to cheering on all the other Aussies.”

The team trains and lives with each other throughout the year and puts a lot of their success down to the combination of strong team camaraderie and the ability to push one another to new heights.

“We're all pretty chilled here in Finland at the moment in a last training camp before heading to PyeongChang,” Morris said.

“Everyone is up to standard and really jumping quite well. We were all lucky enough to basically qualify our spots last year so it hasn't been a stressful season for us, just making sure we stay healthy and have enough energy to peak at the big event.”

Having secured a medal at his second Games, Morris is now looking to pull out all the stops and perform a jump he has never tried on snow to climb one step higher on the Olympic podium.

“So far we haven't had enough time to practice my quintuple-twisting triple-flip,” he said.

“It's on my bucket list as something I need to do in the sport so the plan will be to perform it in this training camp, and then hopefully get the opportunity to show it off at the Games.

“If I make the super final (last round) that'll mean I'm having a pretty epic day and landing so by that point I'll be confident to perform it in competition for the first time and compete for a medal.”

Just like Morris, Scott too has the jumps she needs to lift her too Olympic glory. The 27-year-old claimed her best result to date at the 2017 World Championships and will be hoping that the experience from her first Games will help her lift at PyeongChang.

“It feels pretty cool knowing that this will be round two of flying the green and gold in the Olympic arena,” Scott said.

“Winning a medal at the World Champs has given confidence as it is the same format as the Olympics.

“Confidence is everything but so is being prepared and being able to handle the different conditions at each site so I hope to go out and put all my preparations to work.”

Wells will also be looking to take her Games experience, as well as some solid form that includes two top six World Cup results this season, onto the Korean slopes as she aims to better her 18th place finish in Sochi.

“Leading into my second Games, I’m feeling much better prepared and I am bringing with me an arsenal of competitive jumps,” she said.

“I’m excited to share this Olympic experience with my coach, and support staff, as well as some of my family, who will be coming to watch.”

Aerials skiing will kick off on with the women's qualification on Day 6 (February 15) followed by the finals on Day 7 (February 16). The men's competition then runs across Day 8 and 9 (February 17-18). 

The discipline of Freestyle Skiing is Australia’s most successful Winter Olympic event with Alisa Camplin’s two medals (2002 – gold, 2006 – bronze), Lassila’s two (2010 – gold, 2014 – bronze) and Morris’ Sochi 2014 silver accounting for half of the nation’s Winter medal haul.   
​

Matt Bartolo
olympics.com.au

Four-time Olympian Lydia Lassila has claimed silver and teammate Laura Peel has taken bronze at the second Aerial Skiing World Cup in Lake Placid, New York.

It’s the second time in as many days that the two VIS athletes have stepped up onto the podium at the last World Cup before PyeongChang.

It was very close, with both Australian athletes tied on the same score after doing the same jumps during each round of the competition, Lassila received the benefit of the tie break to move to the higher step on the podium.

Lassila, who woke up on the second competition day with a bout of food poisoning, finished in second place with a score of 93.76.

“Today was a real grind for me but I just did the bare minimum of jumps just to try and keep my energy reserves,” she said.

“It was tough but somehow I made it through, I had a nap in between qualifications and finals. The wind was really tricky today and it got a few people out but we managed it really well as a team and just did what I needed to do – nothing special, but just good!”

Joining Lassila on the podium again in third place was 2015 World Champion Laura Peel also with a score of 93.76.

The 28-year-old said that while she wasn’t “feeling great coming here” she leaves Lake Placid feeling “really good” after putting down the tricks she plans on performing at PyeongChang.

“I felt like I’d been training well but I didn’t feel like I’d been able to put it into the competition,” she said.

“I think I just kind of found a different mindset this week and I just wanted to go for it, hold nothing back before the Games and build some confidence, do all my tricks I’m going to do at the Games.

“It’s just about becoming more consistent and repeating … I can’t change the past so all I can do is attack the next competition and I think I did a really good job this weekend.”

For Lassila, who has now claimed five medals since rejoining the World Cup circuit in 2017, stepping back up onto the podium in Lake Placid was a bittersweet moment.

“This is my last ever World Cup, so it’s a little sad,” she said.

“I tried to really just enjoy each moment today, standing up there and feeling those nerves and that focus and that’s the part of this I miss – that feeling before the jump and then of course the exhilaration when you land. Those feelings can't be replicated anywhere else.”

All four Australian women made the top 12 and qualified for the finals on Day 2, with Peel and Lassila joined by 2017 World Championship silver medallist Danielle Scott, in sixth palce, and Sochi Olympian Sam Wells who finished 11th.

Olympic silver medallist David Morris narrowly missed out on the finals by 01.77 points, finishing the day in 13th place.

While there may have been 16,000 kilometres between Lake Placid and the land the athletes call home, there was still a strong Aussie support group present on Saturday to cheer on the Flying Kangaroos.

“It’s wonderful to have support here,” Lassila said.

“Dave Morris’ family have been an amazing support for me over many years but as well for the team so it’s good to have some connection to home when we’re so far away.”

Peel, whose mother was in the crowd, added that it has been “really awesome and cool to see the rest of Australia getting into winter sports and rallying a bit”, especially with just 18 days left until the opening ceremony of PyeongChang.

David Barden
OWIA

Four-time Olympian Lydia Lassila has won gold and fellow Flying Kangaroo Laura Peel has taken bronze at the Aerial Skiing World Cup in Lake Placid, New York.

Following what were disappointing results in Deer Valley last week, Australia’s aerial skiers bounced back in the first of their final two competitions before PyeongChang.

Lassila, who celebrated her 36th birthday during the week, finished in first place with a score of 99.75, said that it had been important “to step up the intensity this week” after she missed out on last week’s finals by 0.63 points.

“Long day, you know it’s hard for me to make it through a day I’m one year older this year!” she joked.

“You always want to be in the final especially in the Super Final so it’s important for me to do that and go through that process and have these long days so that I know in PyeongChang I’ve got that.

“But it was good, I really took it one jump at a time which is how I’ve kind of always tried to and I just felt really on, especially tonight I just felt really calm, confident, aggressive, assertive – all the right things that I needed to feel.

“I didn’t do too many training jumps because I just needed to conserve my body for tomorrow and, you know, just in general!”

Lydia shared the podium on Friday evening with Sochi Olympian and 2015 World Champion Laura Peel taking bronze with a score of 90.59.

With the Winter Games kicking off in 20 days, Peel said that it was “exciting to know that I did the jumps well today that I’m going to need to do”.

“So often in the top 12 I just do a full full and then one of my triple twisting doubles but today I decided to do two triple twisting doubles because we’ll have to do three jumps in PyeongChang,” she said.

With the last World Cup “not great for Australia”, Peel said that it had been “awesome” to get to stand on the podium with Lassila.

“I mean, Lyd’s like a superwoman so it’s always cool to be on the podium with her and Hanna [Huskova] from Belarus doing triples, it’s awesome seeing triples out there from the ladies,” she said.

“I think after Deer Valley I just had a little time to reflect and sort of refocus and I felt in a good place today, I felt calmer and more confident,” she said.

Fellow VIS skier Danielle Scott, who recently won gold in Secret Garden, finished the day in 12th place with a score of 52.52 after missing out on the six-woman Super Final after leading all Aussies earlier in the day qualifying in 3rd and teammate Sam Wells was 24th while two-time Olympian and Sochi silver medallist David Morris also finished 24th in the men’s event.

Speaking prior to Friday’s World Cup, coach Jeff Bean said that the focus for Lake Placid had been “just to take care of the little things” after the team “were all just a little bit off” at Deer Valley.

“We had a disappointment there,” Lassila said.

“The whole team did, so it was really important for us to step up the intensity this week and we did.”

With PyeongChang following a similar back-to-back consecutive day schedule, the tight turnaround in Lake Placid will be a great trial run for the Flying Kangaroos.

“It is great practice,” Lassila said.

“It will be about really conserving energy tonight, not getting too excited, going to sleep, getting physio – doing all the right things for my body which seems to be my biggest challenge and hopefully feeling fresh tomorrow.”

David Barden
OWIA

Australia’s Flying Kangaroos are jumping straight back in the saddle for this week’s Aerial Skiing World Cups in Lake Placid, New York following disappointing results in Deer Valley, Utah.
 
Coach Jeff Bean described the team’s last World Cup as being his “worst event in four years coaching with the team” but added that the Aussies are ready to “step up our game”.
 
“It just felt like everybody and everything was a little bit off across the board,” he said.
 
“We had some rough weather, but I don’t look at anything as an excuse, ever. We were just a little bit off, everybody was close but it was actually a good reminder for this week to just take care of the little things, take care of the details – the extra percentages here and there.”
 
Four-time Olympian Lydia Lassila missed out on progressing through to the first final by 0.63 points, finishing in 13th place in what was her first World Cup since March 2017.
 
Sam Wells finished 15th while Danielle Scott, who won gold in Secret Garden, China last December, came in at 17th and 2015 World Champion Laura Peel in 20th.
 
Two-time Olympian and Sochi silver medallist David Morris also narrowly missed out on making the men’s finals in Deer Valley, finishing just outside the top 12 in 14th place with a score of 104.98.
 
“The competition was actually really good, a lot of good jumps doing down which means you had to perform very well to get in [the finals],” he said.
 
“I unfortunately did a nice jump but not a fantastic landing, I got docked on my landing scores and was unable to make the finals.
 
“I’m not overly disappointed because really we’re just training for the Olympics so we can peak at the right moment – which is the whole team because we’ve all qualified so, at the moment, it’s just training and building up the skills and confidence leading into the Olympics.”

Bean said that “as painful as it was” for the Aussies, “it was a good reminder that it’s the details that help us win and have helped this program win in the past”, especially in the lead up to PyeongChang.
 
“That’s what we really need to get back to so luckily this wasn’t mid-February and we take it as a learning [opportunity] and we move on,” he said.
 
“Luckily we have two World Cups this week so we really get to get back on the horse right away which is a huge opportunity for us after a bad week.”
 
Fresh from the jump site, Bean said that Tuesday’s training “was probably the best we’ve had at a World Cup in probably a year”.
 
“The site was good, the weather was good – all of our girls did triple twists and double flips, Dave got up to triple flips so it really set us up for the week which is nice,” he said.
 
“And then we have a really good solid day of training tomorrow, we’ve already gone up two degrees of difficulties so we can work on our degree of difficulty. Quite often on World Cup you’re just scrambling to even do your jumps, here we can actually work on them.
 
With back-to-back competition days, the Flying Kangaroos will train again on Wednesday before taking Thursday off ahead of Friday and Saturday’s World Cups.
 
“I think the team’s actually feeling pretty good, [Deer Valley] was a good wake-up call for the staff as well as the athletes and everyone jumped well, just not well enough,” Bean said.
 
“We’ve just got to, for lack of a better term, step up our game and that’s what we’re doing this week, we’re just taking care of the details.
 
“Just raising the level of intensity a little bit for everyone because that’s what you need to do at this time of year in preparation for the Olympics because it’s going to be more stressful and more intense there so we have to be prepared for that.”
 
The final Aerials World Cups before PyeongChang will be held in Lake Placid, New York this week on Friday and Saturday. For live updates from the site, follow OWIA on Twitter HERE and Facebook HERE.
 
David Barden
OWIA

Australia’s aerials contingent have missed out on qualification for the finals of the penultimate World Cup event prior to PyeongChang 2018.

Needing to place in the top 12 in Deer Valley to progress to Final 1, Lydia Lassila came agonisingly close just 0.63 points off qualifiying in 13th place in what was her first event back since the 2017 World Championships.

Sam Wells finished 15th a further three points back with World Championships silver medallist Danielle Scott claiming 17th and 2015 World Champion Laura Peel in 20th.

In the men’s competition Sochi 2014 silver medallist David Morris also came close scoring 104.98 to finish 14th, just over five points outside of the top 12.

"It was a very tough day here for the team," coach Jeff Bean said.

"In my four years of coaching we've not had at least one athlete qualify for the final. It was all small little mistakes and in this sport when it's only three seconds it's those small little mistakes that count.

"Lydia finished in 13th only just missing the final but this is a day that we can all learn from.

"This wasn't the Olympics, we know the team is jumping well and we have two events in Lake Placid next week that we are going to move forward and focus on and make sure we are ready for the Games in February."

The Chinese and USA teams dominated the women’s event progressing four athletes each through to Final 1 while Belarus’ Sochi 2014 gold medallist Anton Kushnir topped the qualification charts for the men.

Matt Bartolo
olympics.com.au

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

Beneath the unassuming and quietly spoken persona lurks a determined athlete.

Nicknamed ‘The Real Deal Peel’, Laura Peel is one of the few aerial skiers who came to her sport in 2009 as both an accomplished skier and gymnast, quickly making her mark on the international scene with multiple World Cup medals, seventh at the 2014 Sochi Olympics and a World Championship title in 2015.

A severe ankle injury in early 2015, requiring two surgeries and lengthy rehabilitation, kept the Canberra native on the sidelines the following season as she watched her team mates soar in North America, Europe and Asia.

Peel made it back to the top ranks last season in immediate style with a return to the top twelve but the World Cup medals, whilst tantalising close, eluded her until the final competition in Moscow early this year when she secured a bronze.

Now in the best shape of her career after spending the off season in Park City, Utah with the Flying Kangaroos squad, Peel had a short break at home before leaving for Ruka, Finland on November 11.

“It’s nice to relax and not feel any pressure, have a car, see friends, check into reality and get out of the bubble for a bit,” Peel said.

“It’s always good to get out and get a bit of perspective. That’s necessary.”

The break at home was short after spending the northern hemisphere summer on the specially constructed Aerial Skiing water ramps in Park City, Utah.

“The pool is hard on the body and I’m excited about getting onto snow. Our focus is on training and we try to enjoy that.”

Speaking with Peel, there’s one trait that is noticeable. Every thought or explanation is rounded off with a positive note.

“This summer I didn’t introduce any new tricks. It’s about getting those tricks to the best standard I can. I’m healthy and confident. That’s important.”

Consistency is uppermost in the 28-year-old’s mind.

“I’m feeling good,” Peel said. “I finally got back on the podium last season. Even though I saved it for the last event, I’m back in the game and where I needed to be.”

“Ruka (in Finland) is one of my favourite places. It’s just beautiful, honestly. Beautiful sun sets and very different.”
Returning to Finland is akin to a fairy tale.

“It’s bushland straight to Frozen! We go from very long days (in Australia) to very, very short (in Ruka).

The day light hours in Finland at this time of year are so short that most of training is done under lights. Plus the Aussies have company.

“There’s a lot of teams training in Ruka. Pretty much all the field except for China,” Peel explained.

“We do hang out. It’s nice that everyone is pretty friendly.”

Looking ahead to PyeongChang, Peel reflected on what she has learned from Sochi.  

“The Olympics can be overwhelming. Usually there’s not many spectators or media and then Olympics changes everything”

“It’s important to realise you’re doing the exact same thing. I’ve done it before and it will be less overwhelming and I want to give my best performance.”

Conditions will play a part in Korea on 14 and 15 February when Aerial Skiing takes centre stage for Australian viewers.   
“There’s quite a bit of wind on the site, which is not ideal, but we spend a lot of time coping with the different speeds and coping with the wind. I will be doing all the jumps I’ve done before.”

“Three jumps in a row. Confidence and consistency is going to be important.”