For the riders on the Wildseeloder, it was all about qualifying for the final at the 25th Xtreme Verbier and for the FWT 2021, as a cut will be made in the overall standings after the event in Fieberbrunn. Only the best three of the four season results of each participant will be included in the ranking. Only the best six female skiers and 13 male skiers as well as four female snowboarders and six male snowboarders can qualify. Here is the replay of the contest and the respective runs.
Snowboard men: double victory for Mindnich
The snowboard men in Fieberbrunn started and finished the event: After the actual tour stop in Fieberbrunn, they also made up for the canceled competition in Andorra and therefore completed two runs. This resulted in a sensational double victory for Nils Mindnich (USA). In his first performance in the morning, he impressed the jury with a stylish run and numerous jumps - the highlight being a 360 in the upper section and two 180s, between which he skied the somewhat flatter middle section of the downhill switch. Second place went to Gigi Rüf (AUT), who showed a freestyle-oriented run that included two 360s. "I was allowed to start first and managed to keep a good score. The result came as a surprise, but of course I'm super happy because my previous results left a lot to be desired," said Gigi after the competition. Third place went to Sammy Luebke (USA), who landed three high and wide airs on his big mountain line.
In the later, second competition for snowboarders, which all riders began at the left-hand start as seen by the spectators, Nils Mindnich then managed to hit the double: two 360s and two more high airs also earned him victory in the Andorra replacement competition. Second place went to Cody Bramwell (SWE), who was the first snowboarder in the history of the Fieberbrunn event to perform a gap jump over the natural halfpipe in the lower slope area, as opened by Mikael Bimboes two years ago. Blake Hamm (USA) secured third place with two 360s and two more airs.
In the overall standings, Nils Mindnich is now in first place ahead of defending champion Victor De Le Rue (FRA) and Sammy Luebke. Gigi Rüf is sixth and thus qualified for the final in Verbier. Elias Elhardt (GER), who finished eighth and ninth today, came seventh in the overall standings, narrowly missing out on qualification.
