Cai and Totsuka finish globe-winning seasons with victories at Mammoth
Mar 10, 2019·Snowboard Park & Pipe
Mammoth Mountain (USA) - The 2018/19 FIS Snowboard halfpipe World Cup season came to a close on Saturday in Mammoth Mountain (USA), where a thrilling afternoon of riding saw China’s Cai Xuetong put down a record-setting performance in the ladies’ competition, while Yuto Totsuka of Japan pulled off some last run heroics to take top spot in the men’s contest.
After the men’s slopestyle competition took to Mammoth’s slopes on Saturday morning, it was up to the halfpipe riders to close out the snowboard programme of the weekend in style, and the eight ladies and 16 men in the finals did just that, with some incredible riding from start to finish of the competition.
China’s Cai came into competition tied with Switzerland’s Manuela Laura Pesko for the most career halfpipe crystal globe wins with four, but by the end of the day the 25-year-old would stand alone atop the rankings with her fifth career World Cup title trophy in hand after earning her 10th career World Cup win.
Cai’s winning run on Saturday would be her first one, in which she started things off with silky smooth frontside 900 tuck-knee indy, into a backside 540 mute, an air to fakie melon, a cab 720 melon, a frontside 540, and finally finishing things off with a classic backside air, earning her a score of 89.25 that would not be touched.
“Of course, I’m so excited,” Cai said with her globe in hand, “It’s good for me, it’s good for my team, and I’m really happy. Conditions during qualifications and training were difficult, but today was really good and I’m happy I was able to land my first run before it got cloudy.”
Second place on the day went to Japan’s Sena Tomito, as the 19-year-old earned her second-straight World Cup podium with a run that included a frontside 900 and 720s both ways to give her a score of 85.25.
Switzerland’s Verena Rohrer rounded out the ladies’ podium in third place with a score of 77.00, a result which would also bump her up to third place on the final World Cup halfpipe rankings for 2018/19 with 2,410 points, leaving her just over 100 points back of second overall finisher Queralt Castellet of Spain and her 2,520 points.
In the men’s contest, changing light conditions and a bit of rising wind couldn’t stop Yuto Totsuka from absolutely charging his second run of the day - the final run for any rider in the competition - as the 17-year-old put on one of the most thrilling performance we’ve seen this season to walk away with the victory and his second-straight halfpipe crystal globe.
Starting things off with a massive frontside 900 melon, Totsuka proceeded to go backside 900 mute, frontside 1080 tailgrab, a unique cab 1080 nose grab to tail grab, and finally finishing things off with a truly incredible frontside double cork 1440 indy to earn himself a score of 95.75 and bump Patrick Burgener (SUI) into second place.
“I’m so happy, today was amazing,” said Totsuka, “The pipe was so good. This was the best season of my life and I’m so happy to win today and to get the crystal globe again.”
In his first two full seasons of World Cup competition Totsuka now has podiums in eight of nine events entered, including three victories, and is a perfect two-for-two when it comes to crystal globe wins.
With a score of 91.75 for a first run that included back-to-back double cork 1080s to start things off and switch backside 1080 mute on the second-to-last hit, Burgener seemed sure that he would take the second World Cup victory of his career on Saturday. So, when Totsuka’s scores came in, the 10-year World Cup veteran couldn’t quite hide his shock. Still, the result was good enough for Burgener’s to finally land on the podium in the 2018/19 World Cup season.
Third place on the day went to Canada’s Derek Livingston, whose first run included a first-hit frontside 1260 tail grab and back-to-back 1080s to finish things off for a score of 86.00 and his second straight World Cup podium.
On the World Cup halfpipe overall rankings Totsuka was far-and-away the top rider of the season with 3,760 total points, with his teammate Ruka Hirano finishing in second with 2,410 points, and Switzerland’s Jan Scherrer rounding out the season podium in third with 2,240.
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