Harrington has had an exceptional 2024-25 season, winning on some of the biggest stages in freeskiing.
The Wānaka athlete was crowned the 2025 freeski big air world champion at the world championships held at the end of March — the first New Zealander to hold this title.
He also claimed X Games gold and silver in slopestyle and big air at his debut event and secured five World Cup podiums.
His consistent success on the Big Air World Cup tour meant that Harrington won the FIS Freeski Big Air Crystal Globe as the overall champion for 2025.
This marks the first time any New Zealand athlete has won a FIS Freeski Crystal Globe. For these achievements Harrington was crowned both the 2025 freeskier of the year and the overall Snow Sports NZ athlete of the year.
Queenstown’s Alice Robinson was crowned the 2025 alpine ski racer of the year, after having her most successful season to date during the northern hemisphere.
She claimed seven world cup podiums, finishing on the podium in every giant slalom world cup race she completed. She also won New Zealand’s first alpine world championships medal with a silver medal from the Saalbach Ski World Championships.
Wānaka’s Zoi Sadowski-Synnott was crowned snowboarder of the year for the eighth year running.
Sadowski-Synnott had a fantastic 2024-25 season, becoming the first New Zealand woman to claim a FIS Crystal Globe, winning the snowboard slopestyle overall World Cup standings for 2025. She is the 2025 Slopestyle World Champion, X Games slopestyle gold medallist and big air bronze medallist, and finished on the world cup podium four times this season.
Adaptive athlete of the year was awarded to Adam Hall. Hall (Wānaka) had two world cup podiums finishes in slalom in Tignes and Feldberg, and his consistency throughout the season resulted in him finishing second in the FIS Para Alpine Slalom overall standings, his best overall placing since 2009.
Freerider Craig Murray (Wānaka) was named the freeride athlete of the year. He won the inaugural Natural Selection Ski event in Alaska.
Snowboarder Rocco Jamieson got the award for the breakthrough athlete of the year, after a strong breakout season in which he claimed two world cup podiums and an X Games bronze medal.
Hamish McDougall is the coach of the year. He is the lead coach of Ruby Star Andrews, Ben Barclay, Lucas Ball and Luca Harrington.
Meg Hoyland was crowned the instructor of the year.
Marion Rolleston and Jon Wardrop are masters of the year.
Snow Sports New Zealand
Awards
Instructor of the year: Meg Hoyland
Masters of the year: Marion Rolleston and Jon Wardrop
Coach of the year: Hamish McDougall
Breakthrough season: Rocco Jamieson
Freeskier of the year: Luca Harrington
Alpine ski racer of the year: Alice Robinson
Snowboarder of the year: Zoi Sadowski-Synnott
Adaptive athlete of the year: Adam Hall
Freeride athlete of the year: Craig Murray
Snow Sports NZ athlete of the year: Luca Harrington
