There must be something in those Wānaka mountains.
The town has produced another world champion on the eve of the Winter Olympics.
Ben Richards this morning won the men’s ski title at the first official freeride world championships in Andorra.
It continued a dream start to the season for the 25-year-old daredevil, who had won the first two stops on the world tour before tackling the Basser Negre face in Ordino Arcalis, which has a vertical drop of 470m in the Pyrenees.
For the uninitiated, freeride skiing does not have tracks or flags or sculpted halfpipes, and while not an Olympic discipline yet, it is gaining momentum for inclusion in 2030.
It asks the athlete to navigate the natural terrain on a mountain, looking for the best run possible from the top to the bottom, and improvising jumps and turns along the way.
Richards is doing it better than anybody right now.
"I honestly can’t believe it," he said after claiming the first FIS-sanctioned world freeride title.
"It’s been a dream start to the season. I definitely feel in a groove right now.
"My goal for the rest of the season is just to keep it going, have fun and keep the golden bib."
Conditions were excellent on the slopes with 20cm of overnight snow.
He backed it up lower down with strong, confident skiing, turning the bottom of the course into two clean doubles, finishing off with a smooth, floaty 360.
Richards’ near-flawless run earned him a commanding score of 91.67 from the judges.
French skier Ugo Troubat, a late call-up to the event, scored 86 for second, and young American Kai Jones posted 76.67 for third.
"I’m so proud to represent New Zealand," Richards said.
"I wouldn’t be here without the many incredible skiers to have represented the country before me, so this win goes out to all of them.
"Like any other competition run, I just try to point it and hold on. Thankfully, I made it down cleanly."
New Zealand coach-manager Blake Marshall, a former freeride world tour athlete, hailed the performance by Richards.
"Ben knows how to stick to his strengths," Marshall said.
"He is dominating right now with his ability to make it look really clean and smooth with no mistakes, and the judges have been rewarding that.
"He’s just doing amazing. I’m really happy for him."
Fynn Powell (ski), Conrad Niven (snowboard) and Jessica Hotter (ski) also competed for New Zealand at the world championships.
Liam Rivera (Switzerland) and Mia Jones (USA) won the snowboard titles, and Zuzanna Witych (Poland) won the women’s ski title.
