Organisers are claiming the World Cup snowboarding event at Cardrona Alpine Resort is one of the biggest FIS halfpipe competitions in the world since the last Winter Olympics.
More than 100 athletes are lining up to drop into Cardrona's new superpipe when the competition begins at 8am today.
The World Cup event has left rival snowboarding world tour competition, the Burton Australian Snowboarding Open at Perisher Blue skifield in Victoria's Snowy Mountains, bereft of competitors this week.
Masters snowboarder Dick Schulze (62) of the US, who lives part of each year in Wanaka, was at the Australian Open this week.
Only 25 male snowboarders had entered the Australian event and on the day of competition, just 14 turned up, he said.
"No Kiwis were here because they are all in Wanaka for the World Cup competition at Cardrona," Schulze said.
National snowboarding teams from around the world have converged on Cardrona to prepare for the 16-month run-up to the 2010 Winter Olympics.
To make the Winter Olympics, competitors representing their countries secure rankings based on their halfpipe performances. The top 40 ranked riders in the world gain automatic entry to the 2010 Vancouver Games.
While the Cardrona World Cup is not part of the 10 event FIS qualification build-up to the Winter Olympics, team-members are competing among themselves to secure places to represent their respective countries.
