JOSIE BAFF
Olympic Winter Games Attended
BIOGRAPHY
Josie Baff is a born-and-bred Jindabyne snowboarder that is following a long family lineage of proficient snowboarders and skiers.
Her Father, Mother and siblings have spent their life in the Australian snow fields and are considered part of the furniture in the winter hamlet. Baff began skiing when she was two years old and learnt how to snowboard at five years old. “Dad was a ski instructor and Mum and he were doing back-to-back seasons from Jindabyne to Saint Moritz and because they loved it so much, we were destined to follow in their footsteps” remembers Baff. Her father ran snowboard camps and the family would go to Mammoth. Being a snowboarding camp, Josie decided she wanted to try it because she saw all the other kids doing it. In 2015 Baff began to take it more seriously as she started to secure good results. 2019 saw Baff on the podium at the Canadian Junior Nationals (first), Australian New Zealand Cup (second) and NorAm (third). Baff had a breakthrough performance at the 2020 Youth Olympic Games in Switzerland, claiming the gold medal in the snowboard cross event. The victory was Australia's first ever at the Youth Olympic Winter Games. Baff also secured her first ever Europa Cup medal, taking bronze in the french resort of Puy St. Vincent. Also in 2020, Baff was a successful recipient of a Tier 1 Scholarship within the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Scholarship & Mentoring Program and paired with SAHOF Legend and one of Australia’s most successful swimmers, Susie O’Neill as her Mentor. In 2021, Baff made her World Cup debut at eighteen years of age in Bakuriani, Georgia, successfully qualifying for head to head finals racing in 15th place. In her first World Cup event of the 2021-2022 season in Montafon, Austria, Baff qualified for finals in an impressive second place performance, finishing the event in a personal best result of ninth. In January at the World Cup in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, Baff recorded her second top-10 of the season, matching her personal best with another ninth place finish. Baff was selected to her first Australian Olympic Team at the 2022 Beijing Games, finishing in 18th place. She also partnered up with Adam Lambert in the mixed snowboard cross team event, finishing in 13th. Baff made an incredible start to the 2022-2023 World Cup season, winning gold in the opening snowboard cross event in Les Deux Alpes, France. The podium performance was also the first of her career in just her eighth World Cup start, becoming just the second Australian female snowboard cross rider to win a World Cup event. At the 2023 FIS World Championships in Bakuriani, Georgia, Baff claimed Australia’s fourth medal at the event, with a silver medal performance in the snowboard cross event. The medal is even more impressive considering it’s her first start at a World Championship event. Baff was in great form in the early heats, winning her round of 32 and quarter-final races to advance through to the semi-finals. She crossed the line in second place in the semis to advance through to the big-final medal round, up against past Olympic gold medallists Lindsey Jacobellis of the USA and Eva Adamczykova of the Czech Republic. Baff moved from third place to second halfway down the course in the big-final and managed to find space and comfortably remain in the silver medal position from that point to the finish line, finishing behind Adamczykova who took the victory with Jacobellis in third place. The World Cup season finished in the best possible way, with Baff taking home victory in the final event of the season at Mont Sainte Anne in Canada. Baff advanced through the round-of-32 and quarter-final heats in second place, and then stepped it up in the semi-final crossing the line in first to advance to the big-final. In the big-final, Baff had an amazing run moving into the lead just after the top section, and remained in first place holding off the other competitors all the way to the finish line to record the second victory of her World Cup career. Baff led Australia to a gold medal in the Team Event at the Junior World Championships in Passo San Pellegrino, Italy. The 20-year-old also took home a silver medal in the individual event, completing a hugely successful season which also included four World Cup podiums including two victories, a silver medal at her first ever World championships together with a third place world ranking on the end of season standings. The 2023-2024 World Cup season was another successful one for Baff, finishing the season ranked fourth on the standings, with five podium performances also achieved, and showed her consistency making it through to the semi-final round at every event. Baff's first podium came at the second World Cup event of the season in Cervinia, Italy, with a bronze medal performance, Medals were also won in Sierra Nevada, Spain (silver), Montafon, Austria (bronze x2), and on the final day of the season in Mt. St. Anne, Canada (bronze). At 21-years-of-age, Baff now has nine World Cup podiums to go with her 2023 World Championships silver medal. LINKS |
SNOWBOARD CROSS ATHLETES
SNOWBOARD CROSS CALENDAR |
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