Winter X Games 14 – Women’s Results

Over and out. Winter X Games 14 has wrapped. Four days in Aspen delivered five-peats, double three-peats, and back-to-back golds. Read on to find out how the women fared.

Friday, Jan. 29th – Women’s Skiing Superpipe

A deserving  Jen Hudak won Women’s SuperPipe Gold. In her sixth Winter X, the 23 year old Utah local spent the last three years pushing progressively harder toward the top of the podium. Last year she finished second by a microscopic margin and Winter X 14 turned out to be her year.

1. Jen Hudak
2. Megan Gunning
3. Roz Groenewoud
4. Mirjam Jaeger
5. Anais Caradeux
6. Sarah Burke

Saturday, Jan. 30 -  Women’s Snowboard X

In the Snowboard X Lindsey Jacobellis defended her title, but not without a lot of heat from Helene Olafsen. Watch for this rivalry to be another one that will  be continued in Vancouver.

1. Lindsey Jacobellis
2. Helene Olafsen
3.  Joanie Anderson
4. Maria Ramberger
5. Alexandra Jekova
6. Emilie Aubry

Saturday, Jan. 30 – Women’s Snowboard Superpipe

As expected, the Women’s Superpipe ended up being  a competition between Gretchen Bleiler and Kelly Clark .  In her final turn, Clark needed to best Bleiler’s 96.66; she dropped and stomped her entire run, but it was too close to call.  Gretchen probably had more technical tricks, but Kelly had a lot of amplitude and tricks, too.  In the end,  Bleiler took the top prize, becoming the only woman to win four times. Hannah Teter took third but her score was 26 points shy of Bleiler’s.

1. Gretchen Bleiler
2. Kelly Clark
3. Hannah Teter
4. Soko Yamaoka
5. Ellery Hollingsworth
6. Elena Hight

Sunday, Jan 31 – Women’s Slopestyle

Jenny Jones won the Women’s Slopestyle final for the second year in a row. She out-shredded Jamie Anderson and Janna Meyen-Weatherby, neither of whom were at Winter X last year.

It was a progressive day in the park. Janna Meyen-Weatherby was incredibly close to nailing a cab nine, which would’ve been a Winter X first for women. Unfortunately, the landing ended up earning her bronze behind Jamie Anderson’s silver but she certainly lit a fire during the comp.

1. Jenny Jones
2. Jamie Anderson
3. Janna Meyen-Weatherby
4. Kjersti Oestgaard Buass
5. Hana Beaman
6. Cheryl Maas

Women’s Skier X

History was made when France’s Ophelie David took home her fourth straight Women’s Skier X gold medal, making her the first skier — male or female — of any Winter X skiing discipline to four-peat. The 33-year-old mother of two passed two Canadian women — Kelsey Serwa, 20, and Ashleigh McIvor, 26 — wjp finished second and third respectively, halfway through the course and outlasted them to the finish to claim a record fourth gold medal.

1. Ophelie David
2. Kelsey Serwa
3. Ashleigh McIvor
4. Fanny Smith
5. Marte Gjefsen
6. Aleisha Cline

Oh, and if you hadn’t already guessed, Shaun White took home gold in the Men’s Superpipe final.

Notes from the X Games: Consistency Pays Off

Now that Dew Tour is over I have had about a week to regroup. I was feeling pretty calm and collected going into the 2^nd stop of the Dew Tour contest, despite the fact I had just been up in Canada riding powder for two weeks. It seems like the snow just keeps following me though, because last week it snowed the entire week in Utah where I was meant to be “training” for Xgames.

Powder riding doesn’t really prepare me for hitting 60 to 70 foot jumps. However, because I am part of the DC team I had a secret weapon -  the DC Mnt Lab, which is located in Park City. This lodge style home is set up with every kind of convenience and I can strap into my snowboard on the front porch and drop into jibs, and most importantly a 50 by 45 foot air bag. Even though it snowed all week long while I was preparing for X Games,  I think all the powder riding was beneficial.

I am now in Aspen at the X Games and the course is amazing but challenging as expected. Unfortunately we’ve been battling bad weather conditions and this has caused continuous changes in the course daily. Tomorrow is our contest day and we all have our fingers crossed that the weather will hold and our minds will stay confident and clear. Tune into ESPN on Sunday for live broadcasts of the event.

(Ed. Note:  Winter X Games 14 is on in Aspen, Colo., from Thursday, Jan. 28 to Sunday, Jan. 31. Much of the event will air live on ESPN and ESPN2. Join us as we cheer Kimmy on and be sure to catch the Snowboard Slopestyle Women’s Final on ESPN on Sunday, Jan. 31 )

Related Posts:

Prepping for the X Games
Bring on winter
Adventures in filming

Winter X Games 14: Bring it on

As temperatures drop, the excitement heats up in Aspen, which is hosting the Winter X Games for the ninth consecutive year. Most of the action will take place over the next four days – and the invited rider list reads like a who’s who of winter sports. This year’s Games should prove to be a showcase for the progress female action sports athletes have made in the genre.

Highlights of WX14 will include snowboarder Torah Bright and freeskier Sarah Burke who are both returning to Aspen in a bid to reclaim gold.

You’ll also see a lot of halfpipe queen Gretchen Bleiler. The only woman to win WX SuperPipe 3 times, Gretchen also has silver from WX ‘07, silver from the 2006 Torino Olympics Halfpipe and an ESPY as 2008’s Best Female Action Sports Athlete.

In boardercross, 24-year-old Lindsey Jacobellis is considered royalty and ranked #1 in the FIS World Cup for 2009. She is an Olympic silver medalist from 2006 and five-time WX Games gold medalist.

Two years ago , Jamie Anderson became the youngest X Game gold winner when she won the women’s snowboard slopestyle. The Two-time WX Slopestyle gold medalist Anderson fractured her hip two weeks before WX ‘09. At the U.S. Open two months later, she ruptured her spleen, bringing a cruel end to the roughest season of her young career. But she kicked off the 2009/10 season right: winning the Billabong BroDown in Aug., Burton New Zealand Open in Nov. and Dew Tour Breck last month.

Also not to be overlooked is Kelly Clark, 26, who is competing in her tenth Winter X Games. One of the most decorated women in competitive snowboarding; Kelly has collected 6 WX SuperPipe medals, Olympic gold from the ‘02 Games, an ESPY for 2002 Action Sport Athlete of the Year and has won the Grand Prix Halfpipe title each of the past three years.

As one of the most X-treme winter sports events in the world, Winter X attracts an international array of gravity-defying athletes. Money (record purses this year), medals and worldwide fame are all up for grabs as athletes compete in skiing, snowboard and snocross so catch all the action today through Sunday.

Get ready to be X-cited for X-cellent performances. Some of the weekend’s highlights include:

Sat. Jan. 30: 2:00 – 3:30 pm Snowboard Snowboarder X  Women’s Final
Sat. Jan. 30: 7:30 – 8:30 pm Snowboard SuperPipe Women’s Final
Sun. Jan. 31: 10:00 – 12:15 pm Skiier X Women’s Final
Sun. Jan. 31: 12:00 – 1:00 pm Snowboard Slopestyle Women’s Final

Winter X Games 14 is on in Aspen, Colo., from Thursday, Jan. 28 to Sunday, Jan. 31. Much of the event will air live on ESPN and ESPN2.

Pretty Tough Trivia: “Superman” is not the man of steel; it’s when a rider lays flat in the air, both hands reach under the board to grab the toe side and or the shin of each boot, both legs are bent and the board is pulled up behind the rider.

Preparing for X Games. A journey through the mind of an athlete.

Preparation for X Games is always a little bit intimidating because the expectations are typically so much higher than at any other contest. The jumps are bigger, the crowds are bigger, all the sponsors are there and to top it off it’s a world wide televised event. This year I am switching things up and am going to do my best to maintain a clear, confident, and determined mind, while also remembering that I snowboard because I love it and not because of what others think about me.

My preparation has begun with the 2nd stop of the Dew Tour, which is taking place as I write this at Snowbasin in Utah. I had a few hours of practice on the course yesterday and this morning and we competed in qualifiers this afternoon. Today proved to be a day of transition, in which my mind remembered how park felt in comparison to powder. Considering I was up in Canada for the last two weeks shredding bottomless powder I am feeling rather comfortable back on the slopestyle course. I qualified 3rd and will compete in the Finals on Sunday.

Bouncing from powder back to park can be a hard transition because each task takes different mental planning. Though I have to be really focused for both, the backcountry is really quiet and feels like a giant soft playground with endless options and limited high impact consequences. In contrast, contests are on hard pack snow and the jumps are fairly big and potentially intimidating. Contests also have a lot more distractions, i.e., friends, crowds, judges, event coordinators. These distractions can add to an athlete’s riding or possible take away from their riding. I am in the process of learning how to be in control of my mind during these transitions. With X Games only a couple weeks away I am trying to find a balance between a focused and controlled mind while still being able to push myself to learn new tricks. I want to be having fun while I’m competing and training but I also have to stay motivated to reach new limits.

My current focus is to be calm, collected, and patient with my riding. My goal for this weekend is to turn off my mind and let my body do the work it has been programmed to do.

(Ed. Note:  The Winter X Games 14 will take place January 28-31, 2010 in Apsen Colorado.  Join us as we cheer Kimmy on and be sure to catch the Snowboard Slopestyle Women’s Final on ESPN on Sunday, Jan. 31)

WX14 Invited Riders

If you’re curious about who made the cut of invited athletes to Winter X Games 14 in Aspen, look no further. This is the first wave of women heading to Aspen in January (including Pretty Tough Team rider Kimmy Fasani). The second wave will be announced in late December. As always, athlete lists are subject to change at any time.

Snowboard Snowboarder X – Women

Joanie Anderson	USA
Deborah Anthonioz	FRA
Mellie Francon	SUI
Sandra Frei	SUI
Lindsey Jacobellis	USA
Alexandra Jekova	BUL
Dominique Maltais	CAN
Nelly Moenne Loccoz
Olivia Nobs
Helene Olafsen	NOR
Maelle Ricker	CAN

Skiing Skier X – Women

Hedda Berntsen	NOR
Aleisha Cline	CAN
Ophelie David	FRA
Sasa Faric	SLO
Katharina Gutensohn	AUT
Karin Huttary	AUT
Magdalena Jonsson	SWE
Marion Josserand	FRA
Ashleigh McIvor	CAN
Julia Murray	CAN
Emilie Serain	SUI
Kelsey Serwa	CAN

Skiing Slopestyle – Women

Sarah Burke	USA
Grete Eliassen	NOR
Keri Herman	USA
Anna Segal	AUS
Kaya Turski	CAN

Skiing Superpipe – Women

Dania Assaly	CAN
Sarah Burke	CAN
Anais Caradeux
Jess Cumming	USA
Virginie Faivre	SUI
Roz Groenewoud	CAN
Jen Hudak	USA
Angeli VanLaanen	USA

Snowboard Slopestyle – Women

Jamie Anderson	USA
Hana Beaman	USA
Torah Bright	AUS
Kimmy Fasani	USA
Megan Ginter	USA
Jenny Jones	GBR
Caroline Kirkland
Cheryl Maas	NED
Janna Meyen-Weatherby	USA
Spencer O’Brien	CAN
Sarka Pancochova	CZE
Raewyn Reid	CAN
Marie-France Roy	CAN
Bev Vuilleumier	USA

Get ready for Winter X Games Europe

ESPN announced the first wave of athletes invited to the Winter X Games Europe March 10-12, 2010. The event will be the first Winter X Games held outside the United States.

Invited X Games athletes include:

SuperPipe Women

Torah Bright (AUS)
Gretchen Bleiler (USA)
Ellery Hollingsworth (USA)

Slopestyle Women

Jenny Jones (GBR)
Jamie Anderson (USA)
Janna Meyen-Weatherby (USA)
Cheryl Maas (NED)
Sarka Pancochova (CZE)

The event will bring together eight different competitions over three days, including Ski and Snowboard SuperPipe and Slopestyle for men and women as well as a Snowmobile demonstration.

Video: X Games Women’s Skateboard Comp

2007 X Games winner Marisa Dal Santo reclaimed gold in this year’s dramatic street competition.

Check out this video for highlights of the event.

Final Results from the Skateboard Women’s Street Final competition held at The Home Depot Center in Los Angeles, Calif. on July 30, 2009.

Name/Rank Hometown Score
Marisa Dal Santo Chicago, Ill. 374.00
Alexis Sablone Brooklyn, N.Y. 353.00
Elissa Steamer San Francisco, Calif 350.00
Lacey Baker Covina, Calif. 323.00
Vanessa Torres Silver Lake, Calif. 281.00
Leticia Bufoni Sao Paulo, Brazil 278.00
Amy Caron Huntington Beach, Calif. 261.00
Evie Bouilliart Huntington Beach, Calif. 252.00
Abisha Alshebaiki Temecula, Calif. 196.00
Tamara Drybrough Port Coquitlam, Canada 124.00

Women’s Moto X Photo Journal

X Games: Ashley Fiolek wins women’s moto X

If it seems like the X Games are all about testosterone driven events, that may be changing. With riders like Ashley Fiolek, Jessica Patterson and Elizabeth Bash taking to the moto track,  women are proving they belong at the big action sports events.

Women’s moto X was introduced at X Games 14 in 2008.  The women’s version of the sport may not yet enjoy much time in the limelight but this year’s X Games final was as dramatic as any race at the event.

Winner Ashley Fiolek crossed the finish line without hearing the roar of her bike or the applause directed at her.  That’s because the 18-year old Florida native is the first deaf medalist in X Games history.

Fiolek, who began racing when she was only seven years old, quickly learned how to ride without being able to hear.  She shifts and manuevers her bike with her sense of feel, gaining a “no fear” reputation as the fastest female rider on the circuit.  Because of an injury, Fiolek couldn’t participate in last year’s  X Games debut.

The Women’s Super Moto X competition included 10 of the top women motocross racers in the world competing for the gold medal. The riders competed in one heat of six laps (less than half the length of the guys race) on a slick and technical course under a late afternoon sun.

For the uninitiated, Super X features “Supercross-style” racing, with a purpose-built all-dirt course with large jumps, rollers and whoops sections challenging riders’ handling and racing skills.

Fiolek’s primary rival,  five time WMA champion Jessica Patterson, took the lead early and remained in that spot until the fifth lap. Fiolek was close behind the entire time, ultimately making her move on a masterful pass entering the final lap.

As Fiolek pulled away to win the gold medal, Patterson earned the silver, and Elizabeth Bash (who as an alternate didn’t even get to compete last year) won the bronze.

On the heels of her recent ESPY nomination for Best Female Action Sports Athlete, Fiolek maintained her seasonal roll with the dramatic last minute win.

At the press conference after the event, the riders were asked how they felt about women being included at the event.

“Getting added to X is huge for our sport and it’s just going to keep getting bigger and bigger, and more people will know we can ride motorcycles,” Fiolek  said via sign language through her father.

“I noticed there were a lot of people here — even deaf fans — and they wanted to meet us, so I think they accept us.”

Silver medalist Jessica Patterson agreed that competing in the X Games really helps the sport’s future and that Women’s Moto X is getting more publicity and becoming more widely accepted.

Despite finishing short of her gold medal goal, Patterson was able to take pride in recognizing how she and her fellow riders were raising the profile of Women’s Moto X.

“They are starting to see that we can do everything now. We’re getting a little bit more exposure each time. They’re surprised really that we go out there and try to do the same events as the men. They’re pretty pumped on what we do,” Patterson said.

Bash, obviously thrilled to be on the podium with her bronze medal,  also felt honored to be part of history.

“I’ve signed a lot of autographs today, which is pretty cool. I think [being in the X Games] is good for the sport and I bet in a few more years it’ll be even better,” she said.

With riders like the three X games medalists competing, no doubt the sport will continue to attract more attention.  Congrats to the winners and all the participants.

Results from ESPN X Games 15 Moto X Super X Women’s Final at The Home Depot Center on Aug 1, 2009

Name   Hometown   Finish
Ashley Fiolek  Saint Augustine, FL         372.47
Jessica Patterson  Tallahassee, FL          375.82
Elizabeth Bash  Riverside, CA                    397.32
Sherri Cruse  Bakersfield, CA                     398.58
Jacqueline Strong  Sedona, AZ                 419.01
Tarah Geiger  Aguadilla, PRI                     428.20
Sayaka Kaneshiro   Torrance, CA             431.21
Penni Cyrus  Queen Creek, AZ                   441.08
April Zastrow  Kuna, ID                               632.36
Tatum Sik  Temecula, CA                             972.93

X Games Street: Marisa Dal Santo reclaims gold

There were two women’s X  finals today.  But unless you were there in person, you’d probably have trouble finding any footage of it.  Fortunately, I was there (straight from an early  morning flight from NYC); tired but excited to see the women rip.

First place in the X Games Skateboarding Street Women’s finals was anybody’s guess as skaters Elissa Steamer, Marisa Dal Santo, Lacey Baker and Alexis Sablone traded spots on the leader board after almost every run.

Going into the final round, it looked like Dal Santo, the 2007 gold medalist, might not make the podium. Then she nailed a frontside boardslide down the 12-stair rail to bring her into third place, followed by a frontside lipslide down the rail, to vault her into first.

Last year’s gold medalist, skate legend, and crowd favorite, Elissa Steamer, skated ferociously, but was overpowered by first time X Games competitor Alexis Sablone, who knocked Steamer into third with her equally powerful skateboarding.

Sablone is making a triumphant comeback to the world of skateboarding after disappearing from the scene for a few years to focus on college. She brought the crowd of X Games spectators in the stands and male skateboarding peers lounging on the street course to a roar by landing a kickflip down the 12-stair, followed by a 50-50 down the 12-stair rail.

“I don’t worry about beating Elissa,” said Dal Santo, when asked about how hard it was to defeat the four-time gold medalist who forced Dal Santo to take silver in 2008. “She’s my friend. I like skating with her. We just come out here and do our thing, and today it just worked out for me.”

Check vert results here.

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