Surgery then rehab for a broken collar bone after a mishap in New Zealand in August is all behind Snowboard Big Air’s Jess Rich now that she’s been able to contest her opening World Cup in Beijing over the weekend.

Finishing seventh and fractionally out of the top six finalists with 71.25 points in a highly competitive field in Beijing, Rich’s main goal was ‘a safe and stylish trick’.

“I am super happy with seventh, although I would have loved to have been in the finals. It is nice to build up some confidence after not being able to ride in the past few contests due to injury,” she said.

The event, which was won by Austria’s Anna Gasser, presented all the competitors with challenging conditions in the quest to secure an Olympic qualification spot.

“Every contest at the moment is pretty stacked because everyone is trying to secure their spot in the top thirty. My jump was really good, but the conditions were a little tough. The landing was super icy so if you didn’t land perfectly you couldn’t land,” Rich explained.

The 27-year-old’s main focus as she heads into her first World Cup for the season has been to ensure she is fit and ready to compete after injuries reduced the amount of time spent training in the snow.

“I’ve had a tough run with injuries this past year so I haven’t had as much time on snow as I would have liked,” she said.
“I am just hoping to stay consistent in the next few contests and hopefully qualify for the Olympics in February.”

Next up for Jess Rich is another Big Air World Cup in Moenchengladbach in Germany on December 2nd before heading to Copper Mountain in USA.

Belinda Noonan
OWIA

It’s hard to believe that no less than eight years ago Tess Coady, a two-time Junior Snowboard World Champion and NSWIS Junior Athlete of the Year, had never even seen snow.
 
However when the opportunity presented itself at a week-long family trip to the ski fields as a nine-year-old, the young gun’s love of snowboarding was almost instantaneous.
 
“I remember it super clearly because I’d never been anywhere really that cold … besides Melbourne,” the 17-year-old joked.
 
“The snow definitely wasn’t what I thought it would be, it was a lot wetter. We were all super stoked when we got there.”
 
Building towards what will be her Olympic debut at PyeongChang 2018, the Snowboard Slopestyle and Big Air athlete recently finished 11th at the opening of the Big Air World Cup season in Milan.
 
For the first time ever, the snowboarder competed on a ramp made entirely out of scaffolding, towering above the bustling Italian metropolis.
 
“It was kind of like a skyscraper, it was a massive structure,” the Year 11 student said.
 
“That was definitely a first, it was pretty crazy to be standing at the top of that and it’s just a straight drop. I remember thinking a lot of times going in the lift that this is super sketchy [and] definitely could drop at any second.
 
“[But] it was actually really cool. I think the weirdest part was being able to look down the drop and it was pretty steep and that was kind of nerve-racking, you only have a really small space so you’ve got to be really onto it mentally and have a plan figured out every time you’re dropping.”
 
Earlier this year in April, Coady shot to prominence after claiming both the Big Air and Slopestyle Junior World Championships in the space of a few days in Spindleruv Mlyn, Czech Republic.
 
Coady’s love of adrenaline sport is undoubtedly infectious and she’s adamant that Big Air “is definitely one of the most exciting winter sports events to spectate, because it’s one massive jump and it can be literally anywhere in the world”.
 
“You would see some pretty intense stuff and there’s some pretty crazy crashes too which can be really exciting to watch,” she said.
 
A winning combination of nerves, self-belief and big crowds always get the 17-year-old “amped up” when competing.
 
“The crowd gets me more excited to be competing, knowing there’s people who are getting excited about the things you’re doing,” she said.
 
“I always get a bit nervous but I think the best thing to do is sort of control where you can, think about how many times you’ve done the run or the trick and how many times you’ve landed it.
 
“You’ve got to trust your riding and your ability.”
 
Next up on the PyeongChang hopeful’s schedule is the Big Air World Cup in Copper, Colorado where she plans on putting down “some pretty big tricks and be pushing my way up towards finals”.
 
“I’m hoping just to put something down that’s a really solid trick and get some good scores on the board” she said.
 
“I’ll be finishing school next year which is something I’m excited to get done … Making a career [out of this] is definitely the ultimate goal, it would be so sick.”
 
David Barden
OWIA

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Image: Instagram @tess_coady
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With the 2018 Winter Games edging closer, PyeongChang hopeful Jessica Rich is aiming to keep things simple when she competes at the Big Air World Cup in Beijing this week.
 
The 27-year-old’s main focus as she heads into her first World Cup for the season has been to ensure she is fit and ready to compete after injuries reduced the amount of time spent training in the snow.
 
“I’ve had a tough run with injuries this past year so I haven’t had as much time on snow as I would have liked,” she said.
 
“I have spent the two weeks prior to China in Austria just getting used to being back on my board. It has been great conditions over there and I’m feeling strong and excited for this World Cup.”
 
The Port Macquarie native first began competing internationally in 2013 on the snowboard slopestyle circuit and the possibility of an Olympic Winter Games beckoned when she competed in FIS events over the 2016/17 season.

Rich placed eighth at the Jamboree Big Air in Quebec, Canada earlier this year, narrowly missing the top six women’s final.
 
Competing in Slopestyle, the young gun achieved her best result of the season when she finished ninth in the qualifying round, missing the top eight final by the slimmest of margins.
 
As for Beijing, the goal for Rich is simple: stick to what she knows and do it well.
 
“My main goal for this contest is to land both my runs.
 
“I’m not in a position just yet to try my biggest tricks so a safe and stylish trick is what I’ll be going for. The goal is to peak around the time of the Olympics!
 
“There is quite a lot of travelling coming up for me. I am heading back to Europe for the World Cup in Germany and then straight to Colorado for the Copper World Cup, a quick trip home for Christmas and then back to Colorado.”
 
The Big Air World Cup kicks off on 24 November in Beijing, China. You can follow the live results HERE. 

David Barden
OWIA

Image: Instagram @jessrich_

Junior World Champion Tess Coady has finished 11th at the opening Big Air World Cup of the season in Milan.Building towards what would be her Olympic debut in PyeongChang, the 17-year-old was in seventh after the first round of qualification following a score of 71.25.

Needing to be in the top six to make the final, Coady improved her score to 76.25 but it wasn’t enough to progress as she finished 5.25 points away from the cut-off.

"I was super happy with how I went," Coady said.

"It was a bit challenging as we only had a couple of hours practice on the jump but I was really happy with how it turned out."

World Champion Anna Gasser of Austria claimed the victory in the final ahead of Great Britain’s Katie Ormerod and Switzerland’s Sina Candrian.

On what was her Big Air World Cup debut in Milan, Coady was the youngest in the field and despite not making the final it was a positive result for her having only started competing on the international scene at the start of the year.

"It's super cool to be one of the younger riders out there," Coady continued.

"I hope to improve my riding so I can be making the finals in these big airs in the future."

The young gun rose to prominence by claiming both the Big Air and Slopestyle Junior World Championships in the space of a couple of days in April.

She is now looking forward to the next event on her schedule.

"I am off to Copper (Colarado) for the Big Air next and I would be stoked to get some solid tricks landed and be up in the mix with the top riders."

Matt Bartolo
olympics.com.au